LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
BY TJSUfi SAIkTB AUTBTOJi
SOME DISTINGUISHED VICTIMS
OF THE SCAFFOLD
THE STORY OF A BEAUTIFUL
DUCHESS
LADIES^ FRAIL AND FAIR
, A GENTLEMAN OF THE ROAD
life of JOHN WILKES
BY HORACE BLEACKLEY
; JOB'N LABE, THE BOHLEY, HEAH
YORK: JOHN LANE COMPANY
RbNTO: S.’b. gundy MCMXVII
Printed by Bai-lantynr, Hanson^ Co.
at the Ballantyne Press, Kdinburgh
INTRODUCTION
1 *^HE materials for a biography John Wilkes are
as adequate as those concerning any other poli-
tician of the eighteenth century. The Wilkes
MSS. in the British Museum occupy two dozen
volumes or more— Add. MSS. 30865-88 — and contain
many thousand letters written by the demagogue and his
numerous correspondents. Some of these have been printed
in Almonds Life of Wilkes and nforc in The Letters, from the
Year 1774 toihe Year 1796, of John Wilkes, Esq,, addressed
to his Daiighier, but the majority are still unpublished. The
Diary and the Address Books in particular are invaluable
for biographical purposes.
In addition tc/ these documents there are many other
papers in the Manuscript Room of the British Museum
relating to Wilkes' Add. MSS. 22131-2 contain many
hundred pages about his trial. There arc the innumerable
"" references cited by Mr. J. M. Rigg in his excellent mono-
graph in the Dictionary of National Biography, The
Hardwicke and the Newcastle MSS. are full of letters deal-
ing with the case of Wilkes.
In the Guildhall Library there is a large dossier, bound
innhree* volumes, including many invaluable records of the
prosecutioft. of the agitator, which, as far as I am aware,
• have never boea examined previously.
The MSS. sold at Sotheby's on August i, 1913, now in
the possession of the author, throw much light upon ti!e
boyhood of Wilkes. They embrace over a hundred of hte
• autograph letters and many others written by his mother,
vi ‘ LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
<
his brothers, and his sister. Much qf his early married life,
too, is revealed in his correspondpce with John Dell, a
copy of which is in the possession of Mrs. Lee of Hartwell.
Some extracts from this were published in Robert Gibb’s
History of Aylesbury. In Mr. A. M. Broadley’s collection,
also, there are many Wilkes' autographs.
A full account of the proceedings against the demagogue
may be seen in the Home Office Papers at the Public Record
Office. Here also in the Crown Rolls, Court of King’s
Bench, is a copy of the Information brought against him
by the Attorney-General for publishing* The North Briton
and the " Essay on Woman.”,
A very accurate biography of Wilkes could be written
from the information in Contemporary newspapers alone,
few men having been so voluminously paragKiphed in the
press. One annual file at least of a daily journal has been
examined for the purpose of this biography from the year
1760 until the patriot’s death, and at important periods
several others have been collated. In like manner all the
principal magazines of the day have been explored.
For the rest, it is almost impossible to turn over any
printed book of memoirs or collection of letters, written
during the latter half of the eighteenth century, that doea "
not contain some reference to the famous agitator. It may
be said without exaggeration that his'life is a history of the
period.
My thanks are due to Sir George Sherston Baker and to
the director of the Aylesbury Museum for permission Ho
make use of the various portraits in this volunje ; also to
Mrs. Lee of Hartwell, Col. Prideaux-Brune, •the late Major .
Molineux-Montgomeric of Garboldisham, and the late Mr.
A. M. Broadley of Bridport for allowing me to inspect their
MSS., and to Mr. Henry Famham Burke, Norroy King of
Arms, for the copy of the Wilkes pedigree at Heralds’ ColTege.
INTRODUCTION » vii
I am obliged to the late Sir Arthur Liberty and to Dr.
Stewart for allowing me the privilege of consulting various
old deeds relating to the Prebendal House at Aylesbury.
To the following ladies and gentlemen, who have sent in-
formation of various kinds, I am also extremely grateful :
viz. to Constance, Lady Russell, Mr. Samuel Pepys
Cockerell, Mr. John Lane, Mr. Thomas® Seccombe, Signor
Aldo Ravi of Venice, Signor Dino Mantovani of Turin,
Signors E. Orioli and Ludovico Frati of Bologna, Signor
Salvatore di Giacomo of Naples, MM. Hector Fleischmann,
R. Veze, and Charles Imaran of Paris, Mr. Hutton of Naples,
Mr. Tage E. Bull of Copenhagen, Messrs. Thomas Field,
C. G. Watkins, Percy A. Wright, Edwin Hollis and Dr.
T. G. Parrott of Aylesbury, Mr.^Albert Matthews of Boston,
U. S.A., Mr..V. L. Oliver, Dr. R. R. Sharpe, Mr. John F.
Wilkes, Mr. Eric Watson, Mr. A. Goddard, Mr. J. Rogers,
Mr. J. M. Bullock, Mr. Lewis Melville; and I beg to
acknowledge the valuable assistance of Miss Constance
White of 89 Fellow's Road, Hampstead, who has done
work for me at the British Museum and at the Public
Record Office. I inust also acknowledge my indebtedness
to Mr. Harold Cox for much valuable criticism.
-Last, but not least, I am greatly indebted to Mr. Clement
Shorter, by whose persuasion I was induced to write this
book, for his advice and encouragement during the progress
of the work.
HORACE BLEACKLEY.
CONTENTS
CHAP. PACE
INTRODUCTION V
1 . THE BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG J
II. THE SQPIRE OF AYLESBURY . . . 15
III. POLITICAL AMBITIONS • ... 28
IV. MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY .... 44
V. THE POLICY OF GEORGE III ... 58
VI. “ THE NORTH BRITON ” . . . . 7I
VII. ** NO. 45 ’’ 87
VIII. THE PRINTING PRESS IN GREAT GEORGE STREET IIO
IX. THE FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR , . I27
X. AN EXilE IN PARIS I44
XI. THREE YEARS OF BANISHMENT . . . 163
XII. THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION .... 183
XIII. THE SECOND PARLIAMENTARY WAR . . 204
XIV. A HOLIDAY IN PRISON .... 233
XV. THE SHRIEVALTY 252
XVI. LORD MAYOR OF LONDON .... 272
xVlI. IN THE HOUSE 297
XVJII. SOCIAL AFFAIRS 3^9
XIX. . LADY FRIENDS ^9
XX. AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO . . . 360
XXL THE END . • • • • 383
XXII. THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY . . ' 403’
GENEALOGICAL TABLE . . . * 448
INDEX . . . ^ . 449
ix
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
JOHN WILKES AND HIS DAUGHTER, by J. Zoffatiy Frontispiece
From the original picture in the possession of Sir George Sherston
Baker, Bt.
FACING PAGE
JOHN WILKES l6
From a drawing by Richard F.arhm in the National Portrait Gallery
TABLET ERECTED BY WILKES TO HIS GARDENER SMART,
ON THF WALL OF PREBENDAL HOUSE, FACING THE
CHURCHYARD, AYLESBURY .... 20
From a sketch by Samuel Pepys Cockerell
MARY WILKES (MRS. IIAYLEY) .... 22
From a painting by Sir Jo'ihua Reynolds in the possession of Sir
George Sherston Bakery Bt.
JOHN WILKES 72
From a painting by T. Hudson in the Aylesbury Museum
CHARLES CHURCHILL, by Francis Cotes, as " he ap-
peared IN BLUE COAT WITH METAL BUTTONS
. AND GOLD LACE ON HIS HAT AND WAISTCOAT.”
(See D.N.B.) 74
From a painting in the possession of John Lane
JOHN V/ILKES lOo
Drawn from life and etched by W. Hogarth
JOHN MONTAGUE, EARL OF SANDWICH . . .126
From the orinnal picture in the possession of the Trinity House^
London, by /. Zojfdny, engraved by V. Green
THREE BOOK-PLATES OF JOHN WILKES . . . 140
zi
xii LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
FACING PAGB
CHARLES CHURCHILL l6o
From a paintinghy Nathaniel Dana in Trinity Hospital, Greenwich.
On the table is a letter addressed to " Wilkes Esq. Paris ”
MARY (POLLY) WILKES l66
From a miniature by Odas Humphry in the Pierpont Morgan
Collection. Reproduced by permission of Dr. Williamson^ acting
on behalf of the Executors
GOLD BROOCH IN THE*' FORM OF 45; LEEDS WARE SNUFF-
, BOX WITH PORTRAIT OF WILKES ; PORTRAIT OF
WILKES ON BATTERSEA ENAMEL BOX ; CHINESE
PORCELAIN PUNCH BOWL . * X • .200
JOHN WILKES AND SERJEANT G^YNN ... 202
From the picture by J. Zoffany in the possession of Col, PridcauX’
Brunt ^
WILLIAM BECKFORD, JAMES TOWNSEND AND JOHN
SAWBRIDGE 238
From a mezzotint by R. Houston, after Houston
MR. SERJEANT GLYNN, JOHN WILKES AND THE REV.
JOHN HORNE . . . . . . 24O
From a mezzotint by R. Houston, after Houston
CRISP MOLINEUX * . .258
From a portrait by Opic in the possession of Major Montgomerie of
Garboldisham Old Hall
BRASS CROSBY 262
From a mezzotint by W, Dickinson, after K, E.
RICHARD OLIVER 264
From a mezzotint by W, Dickinson of the portrait painted in the
I Tower by R. E. Pine
« *
FREDERICK BULL . 266
* From a manotint ty R. Laurie, after R, Oighton
• •
THE MISSES MOLINEUX 276
‘V From a picture in the possession of Major Mont gomes ie of Garboldisham
Old Hall
SIR WATKIN LEWIS 278
(I
From a mezzotint by W»^ Dickinson^ after Dickimon
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
xui
FACING PAGE
JOHN WILKES 300
From a mezzotint by /, Watson after the portrait by R. B. Pine in
the House of Commons,^ to which it was presented by Sir
Alfred Mond, Bt.
CHELSEA PORCELAIN FIGURE OF JOHN WILKES . 338
In the British Museum
DINAH HAYLEY, AFTERWARDS LADY BAKER . . 370
From a miniature in the possession of Sir George Shersion Baker ^ Bt.
RECONCILIATION OF GEORGE III AND WILKES . 374
From a contemporary caricature
MRS. MOLINEUX 378
Froiu a borirait in the possession of Major Montgomerie of Garboldis-
ham Old Hall
A FRIEND TO LIBERTY 396
From a contemporary aquatint in the po^se^swn of the author
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
LIKE OF JOHN WILKES
CHAPTER I
THE BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG
1725-746
jA T the northern end of St. John’s Lane, Clerkenwell,
a narrow, tortuous thoroughfare lined with mean
/ houses, the road is spanned by St. John’s Gate,
the ancient portal that formed the grand south
entrance to the Priory of the Knights of the Order of the
Hospital of St. John of Jerusalem in England. Through
the old archway lies a broad, irregular square, the site of
the great courtyard of the monastic pile, at the farther end
of which, a hundred years ago, close to St. John’s Church,
stood a solid red brick mansion, approached by a paved
area with iron gates. In the early days of the eighteenth
century this house was the home of Israel Wilkes, a pros-
perous malt distiller, whose place of business adjoined his
residence and extended back into St. John’s Street.* This
Israel Wilkes was the son of Edward Wilkes, an illiterate
yeoilian of Albrighton in the county of Shropshire, who,
coming up t% London in the year 1681 to seek his fortune,
had been bound apprentice to a distiller named Samuel
Wight. It was not long before Israel Wilkes had begun
to rise in the world. Within the space of ten years he was i
the proprietor of a small business of his own at Southwark,
m * History of CUrktnwell, W. J. Pinks, p. 314; Old and New London,
Ed. Walford, ii. 324; London Past and Present, H. B#Wheatley, ii. 31 3-16 ;
The Squares of London, E. B. Chancellor, p. 378.
3 • *
4 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1720-24
and being thrifty and shrewd and a sturdy, active workman,
capable of driving his own dray as well as filling his own.
vats, he was able at last to purchase the house and dis-
tillery in Clerkenwell.^ About the year 1724 he seems to
have removed to a country residence at the New River
Head, Islington, a few hundred yards away on the fringe
of the town, leaving his only son Israel in charge of the
business and in possession of the old home in St. John’s
Square.*
Though cast in a less coarse mould, Israel Wilkes, junior,
had inherited much of his father’s commercial ability, and
the distillery continued to prosper imder his management.
A jovial person with a keen sense of humour, lavish and
somewhat prone to ostentation, it was his ambition to rise
in the social scale, while his natural inclination led him to
seek the companionship of men of culture and wit.* In
his marriage he showed the world wisdom characteristic
of most of his race. Sarah Heaton, who became his wife
about the year 1720, was the daughter of a prosperous
tanner in Bermondsey, a fellow-parishioner of his father
in the early days of his business career in Southwark. The
Heatons, like the elder Wilkes, were Nonconformists, and
the bride brought to her husband the rich property of,,
Hoxton Square, where a large colony of prominent dis-
senters had long been established. Moreover, two of
Israel’s sisters, Martha and Deborah, married eminent
physicians of Nonconformist stock, James Douglas and
Robert Nesbitt respectively, the former of whom was a close
friend of the celebrated Dr. Meade, which helped to bring
> The Fiske pedigree at Herald’s College, PiU>Uc Advertiser, Jan. .i|.
1765 : Notes and Queries, 3rd series, iii. 78.
* Clerkenwell Rate Books, cf. History of Clerkenwell, W. J. Pinks,
a P- 453- The rate books and the registers of St. James’s Church show
^ that many persons of the name of Wilkes were resident in Clerkenwell
all through the seveuteenth century.
* Life of John Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 3 ; Letters of Wilkes to his DaughtOf
i. II : ii. 42. Euro\''ean Magazine, xxxiii. 17; Gentleman's Magazine,
Ixviii., Part’l, p. 77.
17*1-22] BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG 5
the Wilkes family more closely within the pale of the dis-
senting community in spite of the character of their
business.*
Like many a great heiress, Mrs. Israel Wilkes, the younger,
does not appear to have been a beauty, but she was a person
of mucH strength of will, good-humoure4 and tolerant as
a rule, with a hot temper that was easily aroused by con-
tradiction. To her children she was the most affectionate
of parents, but exacted their implicit obedience, taking an
absorbing interest in the smallest matter that concerned
them. Over her husband she was supposed to hold absolute
sway, but she was a devoted wife to him, having a sincere
affection also for his mother. While she was as anxious as
he was to attract a coterie of distinguished friends, her most
intimate acquaintances were those of her own faith. Though
not a bigot, she had a deep sense of religion, being faithful
to her particular denomination, and a regular attendant at
the meeting-house. Intensely loyal to her family circle, she
was always ready To take up the quarrel when one for
whom she cared had suffered an affront. In every respect
she was a strong, ma'sterful woman, a suitable mother of a
great man.®
Two children were born to Israel Wilkes and his lady
within the first two years of their marriage. Sally, the
elder, seems to have been a frail creature from the first,
and her health was always delicate, but she was a gentle,
patient- soul, devoted to her parents. Israel, the second
chilji, was healthy and robust, and grew up to be an easy,
good-tempe^d sluggard of sound morals, with little intellect
or strength bf^ purpose. Three more years elapsed before
' Wills of Israel Wilkes, senior and junior, 286 Seymond and 40 Cheslyn.
Pedigree of Sir George Sherston Baker, Bart., cf. History of Aylesbury
Robert Gibbs, p. 216.
* Will of Sarah Wilkes, 53 Webster ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 2 ;
Wilkes MSS. (Brit.*Mus.) passim; True Briton, Dec. 30, 1797. The
letters, of Mrs. Wilkes in the Wilkes MSS., sold af Sothebyjs on Aug. i,
I9i3» throw much light upon her character.
6
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1735
there was another birth in the bright, spacious house in
St. John’s Square, and then upon a Sunday, the 17th of
October, 1725, 0 .S., Mrs. Sarah Wilkes presented her husband
with a second boy, who was destined to become one of the
most famous men of his generation.^ The new baby, whom
they christened , John, after an opulent great uncle, was
remarkably ill-favoured, having a large prominent jaw and
a flattened nose, with a cast in the eyes — beyond all ques-
tion a child of incomparable ugliness. But it was soon
evident that little John Wilkes had a brave spirit, while as
he advanced in years his cheery good-temper and charm
of manner won the hearts oball who knew him.
From the first he appears to have been the father’s
favourite.® Possibly the ambitious distiller was shrewd
enough to perceive that a boy possessing Sarah Wilkes’s
strength of character as well as the grit and energy of the
old grand-sire who used to drive the brewer’s dray, was
likely to make his mark in the world. Another bond of
union between the pair was the child’s kfi'en sense of humour,
with which Israel Wilkes loved to play in his usual bois-
terous fashion. A well-known anecdote throws a light
upon their relationship.
" Jack, have you got a purse ? ” the father one- day
inquired.
“ No, sir,” replied the boy.
” I am sorry for that. Jack,” was the mischievous
answer. “ If you had, I should have given you some
money to put in it.” T
Little John Wilkes, always eager for cash, took care to
obtain a purse as soon as possible.
“ Jack,” remarked the father, when be heard of the
new possession, " have you got a purse ? ”
“ Yes, sir.”
1 Pedigree of Sir George Sherston Baker, Bart. Public Advertiser^
Oct. 30, 1769 ; Annual Register (i 797 )» p- 370 : Morning Herald^ Dec, 30,
J797- , *
. I Add. MS. 30,865, f. 13.
1725-34] BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG 7
" I am glad of it. If you had not had a purse I would
have given you one.” ‘
And the son was as ready to laugh at the joke as his
father, loving a jest as well as he did, knowing also that he
had merely to declare that he was short of pocket-money in
order tS obtain a fresh supply.
Yet, although he was much indulged, the religious
training of young John Wilkes was as stern and puritanical
as that of any httle Nonconformist of his day. Indeed,
an odour of sanctity seems to surround his boyhood. A
Sunday-bom child, brought up next door to a church on
the site of an old priory, with a pious mother who insisted
that her children should accompany her to the Highgate
Meeting every Sunday to listen to doctrines of the most
rigid Calvinistic severity, whose nearest relations were all
strict dissenters, ordering their lives by Bible rules, every
circumstance of his early environment united to form him
into a devout and God-fearing man.® Still, amidst these
austere influences* there was a considerable element of
worldliness, for the household of the laughter-loving dis-
tiller, who was nevA so rigorous a Sabbatarian as his wife,
was the scene of lavish hospitality all the week through.®
For the first nine years of his boyhood John Wilkes
remained at home in the sunlit, drowsy old courtyard. The
ancient gateway that* stood opposite his father’s house at
the southern boundary of the square blocked the narrow
entrance, and few sounds disturbed the tranquillity except
the dreary bell of St. John’s Church — a dismal pile on the
east side-ror the rumble of the chariot of some wealthy
neighbour, *for the place was a favourite residence of the
Upper-middle'’ 'class. Israel Wilkes, also, was the owner
of a coach and four, in which the family were accustomed
to drive on a Sunday to the Southwood Lane Chapel oH
•
‘ Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter^ ii. 42.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 3 ; Annual Ifecrology (or 1797-8.
® Gentleman's Magazine, Ixviii., Part I, p. 77.
8
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1727-39
Higbgate Hill, or pay state visits to the picturesque home
of the old grandfather on the borders of the New River
Head reservoir.^ During most of this period John had two
more playmates, for his brother Heaton was bom on the
9th of Febmary, 1727, and his sister Mary about twenty
months later. The former was a meek, lovable child, but
the girl, who was* remarkably plain, soon developed into a
self-assertive Uttle shrew, with as bitter a tongue as her
mother.
In the year 1734 John Wilkes was sent with his brothers
to a boarding-school at Hertford. It was an academy of
some celebrity, kept by Johq, Worsley, a man of consider-
able emdition and a kind, vigilant tutor, who watched over
his pupils both in work and playtime with infinite care. The
school building was a remarkable structure, known as the
Tower House, standing in the waU that surrounded the
Castle, and approached from the moat by a steep flight of
steps. Here the boy remained for five years, gaining a
fair knowledge of Latin and Greek, for* his master was a
fine classical scholar, and making many friends among his
companions. Apparently John Worsley regarded him with
especial fondness, writing a most affectionate letter to him
after he had left the school, in which he spoke of his “ gen-
erous sentiments and that love of letters, which I myself
beheld the first dawnings of, and no mean advancement
in, with so much pleasure,” adding, " Go on, dear youth,
and prosper in your noble pursuits.” During the whole
of his childhood John Wilkes seems to have won the esteem
of everyone whom he met.* ^ *
Leaving the Tower House at the close of the year 1739,
the boy was placed under the care of the 'Rev. Matthew
Leeson, of Thame in Oxfordshire, a Presbyterian clergy-
* Lift of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 3. «
* Add. MS. 30,867, f. 4 ; Dictiomry of Authors, S. A. Allibone ; History
of Hertford, L. Tumor, pp. 49-50 ; Diet. Nat. Biog. under Israel Worsley ;
History of Bucks, G, Lipicombe, ii. 37 ; Mr. W. B. Gerish in Notes and
Querus, nth series, iv. 474.
I739-H] BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG 9
man, who took a few private pupils. The change was an
unfortunate one, for the new tutor was a superficial peda-
gogue sixty years of age, whose brain was enshrouded by
the mists of theology, a morbid sophist who had inter-
preted the speculations of Samuel Clarke and William
Whistoil in a maimer undreamt of probably by either of
those estimable divines. According to tlie critical John,
who laughed at his pedantry, “ he was continually poach-
ing in dull volumes for some new heresy.” Finally he
became an adherent of Arianism, and announced in the con-
venticle to his startled flock that he was a confirmed deist,
repudiating all their cherished beliefs with reference to
original sin and justification by faith. After this ultimatum
his resignation was inevitable, and a little later, when young
Wilkes had been living with him for about a year, ex-
asperated by the reproaches of his late congregation, he
broke up his school and quitted the town.*
Powerful friends soon came to his aid, regarding him
as the victim of persecution, and in the summer of 1741
he removed his establishment to the parsonage house in
Aylesbury, which a certain Mrs. John Meade, the rich widow
of a tradesman who had formerly conducted a prosperous
business at London Bridge, placed at his disposal at a low
rental.
Oddly enough, the genial Israel Wilkes, influenced
perhaps by his father, remained a warm admirer of the
dreary, presbyter, and when Mr. Lceson left Thame he allowed
his son to follow him to the new seminary. Between
the Mead^ and the Wilkes families there had been an
intimacy of long standing, for they had many friends
in common, 'and when the young man arrived in Ayles-
bury he received a warm welcome from Mrs. Meade, who
lived with her daughter Mary in the Prebendal House '
^ John Wilkes ^ An Unfinished Autobiograph, Harrow, 1888, pp. 9-10
Add. MS. 30,865, •£[. 13, 15; Autobiography of Alex. Carlyle, p. 168;
Letters of Matthew Leeson in the Wilkes MSSI., sold at Sotheby's on
Aug.* 1, 1913. •
« r
lo LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i739-t4
beside the parish church.* Miss Meade was a quiet,
colourless creature, with some claim to good looks, but
little charm of manner, amenable and kind at heart, yet,
being an only child, much spoilt by over-indulgence, and
indolent to the point of selfishness. Still, she had the
advantage of being a great heiress, for both her "parents
came of a wealthy Buckinghamshire stock, and very soon
Mrs. Meade and Sarah Wilkes began to whisper that John
and Mary in after years would make a very suitable
match.
For the present, however, Israel Wilkes was intent
upon giving his favourite son, the education of a gentleman,
handicapped though he had been by the family prejudices
against a public school and the university. Being an
orthodox Whig, devoted to the principles of ” the glorious
Revolution,” he decided to send the young man to the
famous seat of learning p;itronised by William of Orange at
Leyden, where he would have the advantage of meeting
many youthful Englishmen of rank and wealth.® So, a
few weeks before he reached his nineteenth birthday, after
pursuing his studies at Aylesbury for riiore than two years,
John Wilkes went over to the Dutch university, accom-
panied by Hungerford Bland, the son of a Yorkshire
baronet. In spite of the vicissitudes of his education he
had become a scholar of some ability, with a great love of
metaphysics, in addition to which he was a talker of much
wit and originality. The Rev. Mr. Leeson attended him
in the capacity of watch-dog, with the title of tutor,“a
lucrative arrangement for that inefficient person, »wHo seems
to have been no more successful as a schoolmaster than he
had been as a minister of the Gospel. Greatly to his credit,
he prevailed upon Mr. and Mrs. Wilkes to ascertain
■K-
• ' John Wilkes^ an Unfinished Autobiography ^ ^p, lo; Aylesbury Rate
Books; History of Aylesbury, Robert Gibbs, p, 2x6; •Matthew Leeson's
Letters in Wilkes MSS., ^old at Sotheby^s on Aug, i, 1913.
* Life of Horne Tooke, Alex. Stephens, i. 89,
1744 ] BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG ii
whether his companionship would be agreeable to their
son before accepting the appointment.*
It was early in September, 1744, when they arrived
at Leyden, a dreamy old city, with wide shady streets
and lonely squares, intersected by a network of canals
bordered by trees, and on the 8th of the month John
Wilkes was formally enrolled a member’ of the great uni-
versity.* Shortly afterwards he made a short tour of
the Netherlands with his tutor, wandering as far south
as Liege in Belgium, en route to Spa, the most fashionable
watering-place in Europe. Wliile sitting at dinner in a
country inn the day after they had left the first-named
town, they fell into conversation with an elderly Scotsman,
named Andrew Ba.xter, who was travelling with his pupil,
Mr. Hay of •Drummelgier, along the same road. To his
great delight, the studious Wilkes discovered that his new
acquaintance was steeped in philosophy, a severe critic of
Locke, a witty and genial disputant, who was fully per-
suaded that “ when Bishop Berkeley said there was no
matter ’twas no matter what he said,” just the sort of
person, in young John’s opinion, to expose the sophistries of
the tiresome Mr. Lecson. The attraction being mutual, the
four tourists proceeded on their way together, and after
remaining at Spa for a few days, which Baxter seems to
have occupied in expatiating at full length to his young
admirer upon the errors of continental philosophers with
regard to " Immateriality ” while they walked together
ia the Capuchins’ garden, they visited Aix-la-Chapelle and
ColognI, jailing back to Holland down the Rhine. At
the end oh .the brief tour Wilkes had completely won the
heart of thfe 'Scottish metaphysician, who paid him the
compliment of composing a dialogue named “ Histor,” in
which he was the chief interlocutor. “ It is my greatest '
*
^ Matthew Lesson's Letters in Wilkes MSS., sold at Sotheby's on
Aug. 1, 1913. t ^
* Index of English Students at Leyden University, E. Peacock, p. 104..
12
[1745
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
endeavour,’’ declared Baxter, in a letter from Utrecht a
few months later, “ to make you speak and think with as
much wit and sprightliness, with as much solidity and
good sense as you deserve . . . you are the Hero of my
Dialogue. . , Until his death, six years afterwards,
the relationship between the philosopher and the young
man was that of master and disciple.*
When John Wilkes had been at Leyden for a year,
during which time he managed to gain some reputation as
a, conversationalist, and, encouraged by his success, aspired
to be a “ fine gentleman and a man of taste,” three of his
compatriots, who were destin/jd to become famous in after
life, arrived in the city. There were already a score of
English students in residence, but the lectures, with few
exceptions, were of no great distinction, and the Dutch
university had little value from an educational point of
view, except for its cosmopolitan society and the oppor-
tunity of acquiring a foreign language. For the eldest of
the new comers, one William Dowdeswelk a slow, laborious
person, who became a famous but futile Chancellor of the
Exchequer in a famous and futile ministry, Wilkes for a time
appears to have entertained a great regard, which the faithful
fellow, a sincere admirer of his vivacious companion, recip-
rocated most heartily.®
Another of the three freshmen also became his friend.
One evening as he strolled along the banks of the Rhine
outside the city walls he was introduced to a grave and
dignified youth, with the head and featiures of a Greek
god, named Alexander Carlyle — ^the future lea^r'of the
Broad Church party in Scotland — with whom ho was soon
on terms of intimacy, for since his acquaintance with
" Immateriality ” Baxter he had always been fond of the
•‘^mpany of North Britons.® The youngest of the trio,
* * Add. MSS. 30,867, fl. 7-10, 13, 15, 17, 22, 23, 27, 29 ; Letters between
the Duke of Grafton . . . &c.f and John Wilkes^ pp. 161-6 ; Illustrations
of Lit Histy J. Nichols, ih 74-6.
• Add. MS. 3*6,867, f. II. ® Autobiography of Alex, Carlyle^ p. 168.
♦ ^
1745] BOYHOOD OF A YOUNG WHIG 13
however, who was no less a personage than Charles Towns-
hend, the grandson of the great statesman, was never his
confidant. Between the two there must always have been
a certain rivalry, the natural antagonism of keen wits and
brilliant talkers. And although the Clerkenwell boy was
the lift and soul of every company where the other was not
present, he was no match for the handsorile young aristocrat
with the lustrous eyes and nervous, mobile lips, who already
possessed an eloquence that was to make him the equal of
the greatest orators of all time, and whose boundless store
of animal spirits, bubbling over with jest and anecdote
or revelling in a burst of mimicry, never failed to keep the
whole table in a roar.^
At intervals, when the society of his tutor grew in-
tolerable, Wilkes paid a visit to his friend Andrew Baxter,
who continued to reside at Utrecht, some thirty miles
distant, with his two Scottish pupils. Lord Blantyre and
Hay of Drummelgier. The philosopher, however, was
favourably impressed with the old clergyman, whose in-
quisitiveness probably made him an excellent listener,
recommending his young disciple " to follow Mr. Leeson’s
advice always,” and assuring him that no man ever “ had
a better counsellor.” But many of the Leyden students,
who had grown weary of the cx-Presbyterian’s discourses
on the Arian creed, shared Wilkes’s opinion, and his most
intimate friend, a rich young German, named Paul Heinrich
d’Holbach, was the bitterest of them all, disliking the tutor
from the first and declaring him to be a cross, peevish
fellow.* ,Under the influence of d’Holbach, who was an
atheist of ^eat personal charm, with considerable power of
intellect, the religious convictions of John Wilkes began to
undergo a change. Often, when in a mood of mischief, he
had been in the habit of asserting that he did not belie? v,
^ Autobiography of Alex, Carlyle^ p. 170 ; Ed. Peacock's Index of Eng-
lish Students^ p. 99 ; cf. Works of John Gregory ,i. 30,
^ Add. MSS. 30,867, ff. 8, 18,
14 ' LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1746
in the Bible in order to shock Mr. Leeson, who strove
vainly to make him an Arian ; and probably, though he
may not have realised the fact, he was speaking less in
jest than earnest. For some time, and certainly during the
remainder of his sojourn in Holland, the theism of Andrew
Baxter was too deeply rooted in his mind to alleV him
to become a sceptic, but the arguments of his German
friend were strong enough to shatter most of the doctrines
that he had inherited from his Presbyterian ancestors.
At the beginning of July in 1746, after he had been in
residence at Leyden for a year and ten months, broken
by a brief visit to England in the previous summer, Wilkes
returned to his home in St. John’s Square.^ During his
absence the old grandfather of the New River Head had
been laid to rest in the Nonconformist byrial-place at
Bunhill Fields, and the second Israel Wilkes was now the
sole proprietor of the Clerkenwell distillery. The favourite
son received a warm welcome from his parents, who no
doubt were proud to observe the elegan/:e of his manners
and the assurance of his address. It would have caused
them much uneasiness had they known .that, in spite of the
vigilance of Mr. Leeson, he had managed to earn a welL
deserved reputation for profligacy.
1 Add. MSS. 30,867, ff. 8, II, 15.
CHAPTER II
THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBtJRY
1746-1754
E nvironment, which usually has a more im-
portant influence than heredity in the evolution
of the young, attains its result just as frequently
through antagonism as by imitation. Like many
a youth whose religious training had been austere, John
Wilkes seems^ to have grown up with a natural mistrust
of dogma, while, untrue to the commercial traditions of his
race, his thoughts were bent upon social aspirations and a
life of pleasure. Most of his youthful experiences appear
to have served as ji contrast, teaching him that all things
appertaining to his boyhood were undesirable, and the slight
acquaintance that he had made with the polite world only
served to whet his appetite.
Apparently, his father was content that he should
become the gentleman of the family. No profession was
suggested for him, and soon after his twenty-first birthday
— ^to celebrate which he had been brought home from
Leyden — his parents began to pursue their schemes to pro-
vide him with a rich wife. Mrs. Israel Wilkes and her
daughters had joined the communion of Carter Lane Chapel,
where Mrs. John Meade of Aylesbury came to worship when
she was staying at her London house in Red Lion Court, and
the old friendship between the two ladies was as warm as
ever.' The Meade family had been people of consequence
in the county of Buckinghamshire for many generations.
* Registers of Carter Lane Chapel; John n'llftes, an Unfinished Aulo-
btography, p. 10.
>S
i 6 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1746
Sprung originally from Bragenham in Soulbtiry, some of
the members of its younger branches had gained wealth
and distinction in law, medicine, and commerce. A large
portion of their riches had descended to Mrs. Meade’s only
daughter Mary, the indolent young woman whose acquain-
tance John Wilkes had made four years previously while
living with Mr.* Leeson at the Parsonage House. The
fortune left to her by her father had been augmented by a
large inheritance from her uncle, William Meade, who
bequeathed to her the reversion of the Manor of Aylesbury,
and she was also acknowledged as the future heiress of
her uncle, Richard Sherbrooke of Chenies, a chimney-corner
dotard, who had lived with her mother for some years.^
When Israel Wilkes suggested to his son that his fortune
would be made if he could manage to win this opulent
bride, the ambitious youth seems to have agised with his
father without hesitation, posting down into Buckingham-
shire at the first opportunity to urge his suit. From his
letters to Paul d’Holbach it would appear that he had
persuaded himself, or desired to persuade his acquaint-
ances, that his commonplace mistress was an acknowledged
beauty, and, as though anxious to disavow all mercenary
intentions, he wish, d to be regarded as a woeful lover,
infatuated by her blandishments.® It is probable that
Miss Meade’s buxom charms and country freshness made
him overlook her lack of intellect, but it is incredible
that he can have persuaded himself that his courtship
was inspired by affection. Amidst the solid comforts
of the Prcbendal House self-delusion was impossible,
and he was well aware that the woman of his choice
would have found no favour in his eye? had she not ,
been the lady of the Manor of Aylesbury. Being a most
•fastidious admirer of beauty in women, he realised the
1 Will of William Meade [Botton 12]. Cf. History of Aylesbury, ,
R. Gibbs, pp. 316-17- »
> Add. MSG. 30,867, fi. 14, l8, 20.
1746] THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBURY 17
sacrifice that he was making in obeying his father's wishes.
It was a sacrifice," as he confessed in later years, to
Plutus, not to Venus." 1
Poor Mary Meade, whose spinstcrhood seemed likely to
endure in spite of her riches, was soon conquered by her im-
petuous .suitor. For a .short time indeed the quiet house-
hold at the Aylesbury Manor seems to have looked askance
at the volatile youth, who, instead of the modest young cit,
as they had .seen him last, appeared to be transformed into
one of the pretty fellows from the fashionable end of the
town. The splendour of his dress and the sprightliness
of his talk perhaps aroused misgivings in the mind of the.
heiress that this brilliant boy would harmonise strangely
with her humdnim surroundings and tranquil ways. Yet
the persuasive AVilkes, in his cheery, masterful style, had
little difficulty in sweeping aside the apprehensions of both
mother and daughter. The charm of his conversation
made them forget that he was ugly, for, as they listened
with delight to the fiidless stream of wit and humour that
poured from his lips, his evil squinting eyes seemed to
soften and his hard, bbstinate mouth to grow tender and
kind. It was his boast that it '' took him only half an hour
to talk away his face," while he often declared in jest that
he could beat the handsomest fellow in England in a contest
for a lady’s favours if he had a fair start on account of his
disfigurement.^ At the end of November, a few weeks after
he had attained his majority, he was able to inform his
friend d’Holbach that he believed he had won the heart
of his inantorata. Early in April he wrote to Andrew
Baxter to telhhim that he was about “ to enter into the happy
state of matrimo'ny." ^
The marriage of John Wilkes and Mary Meade took place
* Add. MS. 30,880 B., f. 71.
Correspondence of Ed. Burke (1844), i. 376 ; Lit. AnecdoteSy
H. Barker, i. 203 ; * European Magaziney xxxiii. 227 ; Life of F. Reynolds^
1. 20. *
* Add. MSS. 30,867, ff. i8, 22.
B
[ 174 ;
i8 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
on the 23rd of May 1747 — a month alleged by superstition
to be the least auspicious of the year. A licence had been
obtained from the Bishop of London, and the ceremony
was performed in St. John's Church, Clcrkenwell, the dreary
place of worship adjoining the bridegroom’s home in the
quiet old square.^ The young couple were treated with
much generosity by their parents. Israel Wilkes made a
gift to his son of real estate, producing an income of three
hundred and thirty pounds with a promise of an additional
allowance in the future, while Mrs. Meade settled the Pre-
bendal House and the Manor of Aylesbury upon her
daughter.^ It was arranged that the newly married pair
should reside at their country scat during the summer, but
should spend the winter at Red Lion Court, behind St.
Sepulchre’s Church, with the bride’s mothei.
During the next five years John Wilkes combined the
life of a rural squire with that of a man of fashion, interested
in his estate when at Aylesbury, devoted to the coffee-
house when in town. Invariably cheery and good-humoured,
he proved a most exemplary husband, always solicitous of
his wife’s comfort, full of attention lor her insipid mother,
more than tolerant towards her dull-witted uncle Sherbrooke.
Though the gloomy old house in Red Lion Court was an*
uncongenial home for a young man of his temperament, lie
had no reason to complain of its dullness, since Mrs. Meade
and her daughter, while preferring to remain at the fireside
themselves, encouraged him to go into society, and he was
free to seek outside diversions when and where he chose.
Soon he was surrounded by a merry coterie of kindred
spirits, one of whom, a Scottish physician' named John
Armstrong, who had written much admifable poetry, was
able to introduce him to many a famous wit and brilliant
writer. Thus, the strange menage in Red Lion Court proved
' Rcgistc-rs of St. John’s, Clerkenwell; Registers at the Bishop of
London’s Office. *
^ Will of Israel Wilkes [40 Cheslyn] ; Deed in the possession of Dc
Stewart of the Prebcndal House, Aylesbury.
t
,747-521 THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBURY 19
a complete success, and Wilkes and his wife, each going
their own way, one as amiably selfish as the other, managed
to live together very happily. The birth of a daughter,
on the 5th of August, 1750, does not appear to have
awakened any greater sympathy between the ill-mated
pair, for although the father was passionately attached to
liis little girl from the first, the lethargic mother regarded
the child with indifference. The baptism took place three
weeks later at Carter Lane Chapel, since Wilkes, who was
widely tolerant on all matters of religion, while professing
to be a member of the Established Church, regarded it as
good policy to gratify his mother-in-law by worshipping at
the meeting-house.^
In the town of Aylesbury, by reason of his wife’s position
ns lady of the, manor, and his own personal magnetism,
Wilkes soon became the most popular and influential among
the local dignitaries. Taking the greatest pride in his
beautiful home, he set to work to extend the boundaries
of his property, anxious that it should rank among the
notable scats of Buckinghamshire. Standing on the verge
of the town beyond 'the churchyard, from which it was
separated by a high stone wall, the Prebendal House — a
solid square-built structure — ^was surrounded by a spaci-
ous garden and broad meadows, except on the western
side, where several cottages with small plots of ground
marred the symmetry of the estate. In the course of time,
by degrees and with some difficulty, Wilkes managed to
purdiase these various lands and tenements, being assisted
in the negotiations by his neighbour, John Dell, a gentle-
man farmer of culture and intelligence, who, fascinated by
the wit and bonhomie of the young squire, was content to
serve him as a sort of unpaid estate agent.^ All through
his life Wilkes had the knack of engaging the fealty of some
* ^ Life of Wilkes, J'. Almon, i. 17, 20 ; Registers of Carter Lane Chapel.
“ Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell [MSS. of Mrs. Lee of Hartwell] ;
cf. History of Aylesbury, R. Gibbs, pp. 217-24.
20
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.750-5=
faithful satellite. And while increasing the acreage of his
demesne, he squandered money lavishly on its improve-
ment, draining and building, forming lawns, shrubberies,
and plantations under the superintendence of John Smart,
his capable gardener, to the great admiration of the towns-
folk, who were allowed to walk through the grounds. In
January 1752 he managed to persuade his wife to settle
the estate upon him by a deed of gift, which qualified him
for a seat upon the county bench, and gave him the power
of gratifying the ambitions that were maturing in his mind.'
Meanwhile, his public spirit was unbounded. Having
been made a magistrate, he performed the duties of his office
with the zeal and efficiency that was habitual to him. When
in residence at Aylesbury he presided at every vestry,
auditing the rate books, and passing the overseer’s accounts.
None of his colleagues were more constant in their attend-
ance at turnpike meetings and petty sessions. In the course
of time he was made a feoffee of the Grammar School and
a trustee of the Foundling Hospitd. To most of the
charities in the town he was a generous subscriber. He
presented a new pair of doors to tlie parish church, where
his tall, thin figure was to be seen every Sunday morning
in the manor-house pew, and in all parochial matters he
took the keenest interest. Next to the faithful Dell, his
closest friend was John Stephens,, the vicar, who came to
smoke a pipe with him on most evenings in the week,
while they chattered together upon local affairs. Naturally,
his enthusiasm brought its own reward, for the people of
Aylesbury regarded the genial John Wilkes as 'one of the
finest gentlemen that had ever come to live amongst them.'®
Occasionally, the sympathetic Sally would pay a visit
to her brother’s country house, whence she often wrote to
^ Deed in the possession of Dr. Stewart. Many of Wilkes’s improve-
ments seem to have been carried out some years later. See his corres-
pondence with Dell. • *’
* History of Aylesbury f R. Gibbs, p. 237 ; cf. Correspondence of Wilkes
and Dell ; Aylesbury Rate Books.
H’j \i.
1750-53] THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBURY 21
her cousin, Sophy Nesbitt, to tell her the latest news from
Aylesbury. My little niece is the prettiest plaything in
the world for me,” was her verdict with regard to the five-
year-old Polly, ” and diverts me ten times more than my
squirrels or doormouse ” — high praise indeed, since the
latter pet was one of the chief joys of her life. ” My little
niece improves every day,” she declared on another occa-
sion. “ She talks continually of her dear cousin Sophy and
repeats all the pretty things you said to her. She is the
present tyrant, and the grave justice, my brother, is not
half so absolute in this place as she ... he writes nothing
but warrants for noisy, quarrelsome fellows, and his worship
is as solemn all the morning as a city alderman, and as
upright, I assure you, as a candle in a socket.” From Sally’s
letter it is evident that the Prebendal House at Aylesbury
was a very happy home.^
Several changes occurred in the Wilkes family during
the first five years of John’s married life. In January
1750, to his deep sofrow, his youngest sister, Ann, died of
smallpox in the old house in St. John’s Square, at the early
age of fourteen, and in' a letter that he sent soon afterwards
to Andrew Baxter, with whom he continued to keep up a
constant correspondence, he wrote tenderly of “ the great
merit and sweetness of temper ” of the dead girl.*-^ On the
i8th of June, 1752, his second sister, Mary, a vitriolic young
lady, brisk, bustling, and shrewd, whose youthful freshness
gave her some little charm, though she had the Wilkes
fcatijres, led a meek and opulent “ New England merchant ”
to the altar* a luckless individual named Samuel Storke,
who survived *his marriage little more than twelve months.^
A few weeks later, on the loth of August, John’s elder
[brother, Israel, was married to Miss Elizabeth dc Ponthieu
^ Mss. sold at Sotheby’s, Aug. i, 1913.
• “ Registers of St. James's^ Clerkenwell [Harlcian Soc.J, vol. xx. ;
Add. MS. 30,807, 1. 40.
® Registers of Si. James’s, Clerkenwell [Harleian Soc.],» vol. xiii. ;
cf. Boston Gazette, Sept. 18, 1753 ; Add. MS. 30,875, f. 14.
22
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1750 52
of the parish of St. Mildred, Broad Street, the daughter of
" a considerable Manchester agent,*' with whom the bride-
groom had entered into partnership.^ Yet poor Sally,
though craving obviously for matrimony and confessing in
her letters to her cousin that she was called an angel by
these men creatures ** every day, could not manage to
capture a husband.
In addition to the faithful Dell and the tobacco-loving
vicar a third warm admirer was added to the exclusive
circle of John Wilkes’s acquaintances during the early days
of his life at Aylesbury. With this friend there was the
bond of literary sympathy, for he was a scholar and critic
of some ability, Thomas Edwards by name, who lived on
his esteite at Turrick, near Ellesborough, a few miles away.
He was a mild, studious recluse — “ a poor solitary hermit ”
he called himself — having no pleasures besides his books,
his garden, and his farm, always happy in the country all
the year long, and he often chided Wilkes for running away
to seek the gaieties of town when winter drew near. Yet,
this demure author, who was usually engaged in writing
rhapsodies about the birds and flowers, was able to wield
a caustic pen, and his Canons of Criticism, a smart attack
upon the Rev. William Warburton’s edition of Shakespeare, ’
had made the pretentious prelate the laughing stock of the
literary world.^
After he had been married for five years a change began
to take place in Wilkes’s habits of life. Already he had
become famous as a wit and raconteur, and his circlp of
friends in London increased with every season*. During
the whole of each winter he was obliged to seek his pleasures
outside his home without the companionship of his wife,
and since sympathy alone could have kept him a faithful
husband — ^for, like most of his fellows, he had little respect
^ Registers of St. Martin Outwich [Harlcian Soc.], vol. xxxii. ; Lifi^
of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 3.
* Bodleian MSS. loii, pp. 25, 79, 93, 120, 143; Add, MS. 30,867,
fi. 26, 28, 68, 79.
I752J THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBURY 23
for the obligations of matrimony— it was inevitable that
his love of gallantry should lead him into innumerable
liaisons. In his gay world marital infidelity was regarded
as a venial fault. Even poetical John Armstrong, his
family doctor, who was a gay rogue, for all his dreamy eyes
and dour Scottish features, was ready to chaff him about his
illicit amours in the same breath in which he inquired after
the health of his good lady ; ^ while Thomas Brewster, the
fashionable physician who resided at Bath, where Wilkes
began to spend many a festive week, used to write letters
to him about his conquests that he could not have shown
to his wife.® But no whisper of this wickedness was ever
heard in Red Lion Court, where the crafty Wilkes continued
to live in perfect harmony with his wife and her people.
Of all the friends that surrounded him at this period
the most congenial by far was Thomas Potter, the son of
a late archbishop and a member of Parliament, a dissolute
barrister with a brilliant intellect and an eloquent tongue.
A man of considerable wealth, the enjoyment of wine and
women was the chief business of his life, but at intervals
he turned to politics as a diversion, being acknowledged
as one of the best debaters in the House. He had made
• the acquaintance of Wilkes while canvassing the borough
of Aylesbury, which he wished to exchange for his con-
stituency in Cornwall at*thc next general election, and having
many tastes in common, the two witty young reprobates
had become the closest of allies. Although he was fond of
pretesting in chaff that Wilkes had done everything in
his powef if) destroy his health by strong soups, filthy claret,
rakish hours, and bad example,” ^ it is evident from their
correspondence* that Potter, the superior in riches and
position, was the instigator in most of their dissipations.
One of his characteristic letters, written to Wilkes from Lisle
' Add. MSS. *30,867, f. 80; 30,875, f. 17.
. * Add. MSS. 30,867, ft. 52, 53 ; Life of Wil/ies^ J. Aliijon, i. 40.
* Add. MS. 30,880 B., f. I.
[1752
24 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Street, Leicester Square, on the 19th of October, 1752,
throws some light upon the relationship between the two
rakes ;
“ If you have either religion or morality ; if you have
but a pretence to one single social virtue ; if you prefer
young women and whores to old women and wives ; if you
prefer toying away hours with little Sattin Back to the
evening conferences of your Mother-in-law ; if the charms
of the Muses are better than the whiffs of tobacco from Mr.
Stephens ; if the sprightly notes of the fiddle are prefer-
able to the squalling of your brat ; if life and spirit and wit
and humour and gaiety, but above all, if the Heavenly-
inspired passion called Lust, have not deserted you and left
you a prey to dullness and imbecility, hasten to town that
you may take a place in my post-chaise for Bath next
Thursday morning, whither I am hurrying from the wisdom
of the doctors and midwives, the loathsome bawdy of the
nurses, the solemn and hideous lullabie;5 of my Mother-in-
law, and the odious yell of a young female Yahoo that thrust
herself into the world yesterday.” *
Having broken the heart of his first wife, and being
notoriously unfaithful to his second, the dissolute poli-
tician was restrained by no scruples of conscience from
encouraging his friend in his numerous infidelities. “ May
Venus and every other duty of pleasure be propitious to
you at Tunbridge,” he wrote to Wilkes upon hearing that
he was leaving town ; “ should you meet a goddess under the
vulgar appellation of Miss Betty Spooner, offer 'incense to
her for my sake . . . you will find her all liveliness and
lechery.” ^ All through this correspondence there are
similar suggestions, showing that the two friends took a
pride in boasting to one another of every breach of their
marriage vows. Potter himself was generally believed to
* Add. MS. 30,867, f. 65.
* Add. ks. 30,867, f. 62 ; cf. Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 18,
1753] THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBURY 25
be " the gallant of Warburton's wife ’’ — ^the favourite niece
of Mr. Allen of Prior Park — ^and in one of his letters from
Bath he acknowledges the fact, well aware that Wilkes
would be niuch amused to know that the bombastic prelate
with whom his friend Edwards had broken a lance so suc-
cessfully was in truth an injured husband.*
In the intervals of dissipation Potter displayed con-
siderable zeal in advancing his political interests, and being
resolved to become member for Aylesbury at the general
election of 1754, he spared no pains in wooing the con-
stituency. There was only one means of conciliating the
electors, and, aware that every vote in the borough had to
be paid for, he was prepared, as Wilkes euphemistically
informed his agent, to “ talk to our good people in the
proper way.” It was a great advantage to him that he
had gained the assistance of the young lord of the manor,
for “ seventy or eighty of the principal inhabitants had
resolved to adhere together ” in supporting a candidate,
and these independent tradesmen and iimkeepers, while
making it their boast that no great noble in the county
had any influence with them, were likely enough t ) listen
to the advice of the principal gentleman in the town.
. Moreover, Wilkes had the power to nominate the returning
; officer, and his choice had fallen upon the accommodating
John Dell.®
Apart from all motives of self-interest Potter had a
sincere affection for his friend. ” The highest pleasure,”
he declared, “ that can be afforded me next to the company
of a* wom'ait is that of my dear Wilkes.” * Nor was the
advantage of* the intimacy by any means wholly on one
side. Both in town and in the country Potter was able to
gratify Wilkes’s social aspirations by giving him valuable
^ Add. MS. 30,867, f. loi.
* Add. MS. 30,880 B., f. I ; Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell,
1753-
* Add. MS. 30,867, f. 75.
* Add. MS. 30,876, f. 13.
26
[1753
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
introductions. Before the end of 1753 he had brought
him before the notice of Lord Temple of Stowe, and his
brother, George Grenville, each of whom was glad to culti-
vate his friendship, recognising him as a person of influ-
ence in their county. No doubt, too, they were favourably
impressed by the witty squire ; and perceiving that he was
a man of indomitable spirit and restless energy, perhaps
also these shrewd politicians foresaw that he was certain
to come to the front.
While he was canvassing the electors of Aylesbury on
behalf of his friend, Wilkes himself began to be fired with
political ambitions. It was suggested by some of his
numerous courtiers that he should become Potter’s col-
league, and rumour actually declared that he was to be
the other candidate.' Aware that his election would be
certain owing to his great popularity, there is little doubt
that he would have accepted the invitation of his ad-
mirers, but unfortunately someone else was already in the
field — an old friend of his, to whom he' had long since pro-
mised his support. This was a certain John Willes, the
son of the Chief Justice of the Common Picas, who had
some influence in Aylesbury, his brother having represented
the town in the Parliament of 1747. A barrister, like
Potter, with a scat in the House already, in many respects
he was the antithesis of his colleague, a homely industrious
soul, who made no cult of indecency and who was extremely
shy in the presence of women. So great was his intimacy
with Wilkes that he made him a confidant in his love-affairs,
seeking his advice in his courtship of a disdainful lady,
whom he wished to make his wife, but to whom he could
not summon up courage enough to propose.* Although
John Wilkes soon grew weary of the banalities of the artless
Willes, he kept his promise loyally to support him in his
political campaign.
1 Add. MS. 30,867, f. 75.
* Add. MS. 30,867, f. 44 ; History of Aylesbury y R. Gibb.s, p. 213.
1754] THE SQUIRE OF AYLESBURY 27
Many months before the election Potter began to per-
ceive that his fellow-candidate and himself were both
poachers on another’s domain, and realising that Wilkes
would have been member for Aylesbury but for their inter-
position he did his best to show that he appreciated this
sclf-sacrifice. The compensation that he was able to offer
was most flattering to his friend’s vanity, for by using his
influence with George Grenville he succeeded in getting
Wilkes appointed High Sheriff of Buckingham for the year
1754.^ At the same time he took some pains to find him
a suitable constituency, soliciting all the borough-mongering
friends of his accpiaintance, and at last it seemed as though
he had discovered a vacancy at Bristol. It happened,
however, that Lord Temple had conceived the idea of
sending Wilkes to Berwick-upon-Tweed to oppose the
Dclaval family, and the squire of Aylesbury, flattered by
the attention of his noble patron and pleased at the pros-
pect of a desperate battle, had already promised to contest
the borough in the north. Although his family, fearing
that his finances were not sufficient to support the expenses
of a parliamentary career, endeavoured to dissuade him
from the attempt, while Potter, perceiving that his friend
was fighting a forlorn hope, prophesied his defeat at the
poll, the obstinate Wilkes refused to listen to any remon-
strances, and early in April he set off to the border-town
to prepare for the election.^
^ Grenville Papers^ i. 102 ; Add. MS. 30,867, f. 95 ; Correspondence of
Wiltes and Dell, Jan. 15, 1754.
* Life of Wilkes j J. Almon, i. 23-4 ; Add. MSS. 30,867, f. 99 ; 30,877,
i; Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, April 2, 1754; Public Adver-
User, Nov. g, 1763.
CHAPTER III
POLITICAL AMBITIONS
1754-1757
AT the time when John Wilkes was making his first
attempt to enter the House of Commons a great
crisis had occurred in the fortunes of his party.
^ The death of Henry Pelham, the Prime Minister,
had deprived the Whigs of a leader, who for more than a
decade had been the autocrat of Parliament. Crafty and
courteous, a shrewd judge of mankind, and a skilful oppor-
tunist, he had proved an efficient successor to Sir Robert
Walpole as a party manager, and though destitute of genius
and somewhat timid and lethargic, h6 had managed to
preserve unity amongst his followers. For some years,
indeed, before his death the Tory opposition had ceased to
exist. Every politician of eminence was on the side of the
Government. It was the period when Whiggism had reached
its apotheosis.
For nearly forty years the party had enjoyed an unin-
terrupted reign of power. Its main policy, which, in the
language of the time, was founded upon “ the principles of
the Revolution,” had for its object the preservation of the
supremacy of Parliament as delineated by the Bill of Rights,
and the maintenance of the Hanoverian succession which
had been defined by the Act of Settlement. Tn each respect
its administration was a complete triumph. Since the first
two Georges, troubling little about the concerns of their
English subjects, were content with a limited monarchy, the ,
authority of Parliament was never challenged by the king.
In spite of two rebellions in favour of the Stuarts the
38
1754]
POLITICAL AMBITIONS
29
loyalty of the nation remained unimpaired, and after the
defeat of the Pretender in 1745 there was no longer any
danger that the established d3masty would be overthrown.
The victory of the Whigs was assisted by the impotence of
their opponents. Tainted with Jacobitism, tom by faction,
and destitute of policy, the Tory party, save for spasmodic
intervals, had been wholly ineffective as a fighting force, and
seemed gradually to have lost the confidence of the nation.
Under the strong, sane administration of Walpole the Whig
principles of government came to be regarded as an integral
part of the constitution, and a Doge-like king, entirely
subservient to the two Houses of Parliament, seemed to
be the only ruler acceptable to the English people. In all
its essentials the policy of Walpole had been followed by
his sedulous pupil, Henry Pelham.
Still, although the nation had been rescued from
monarchial t5n'anny, there was a grave danger that a tyrant
almost as oppressive had been put in its place. The Revolu-
tion, as manipulated by the Whigs, had merely transferred
authority from the Crown to the Parliament, but had done
nothing to protect the country from the despotism of the
latter. The House of Commons, which under Walpole and
Pelham had become the dominant power, was filled with
pensioners and placeholders, entirely subservient to the
executive. Its 550 members were returned by the votes of
a fraction of the populace, and most of the constituencies
were at the service of the highest bidder who sought their
suffrages ; or were obliged to return the nominee of some
noble patrdh. In spite of the fact that it had such a small
claim to represent the nation, it assumed prerogatives that
were a menace ’to the liberties of the people. It had the
power to imprison those who came under its displeasure.
It decided disputed elections by the vote of the whole
j House. It claimed freedom from hostile criticism for all
its members, as well as immunity from actions at law.
In " the principles of the Revolution ” the refc/rm of the
[>754
30 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
representative system had no place. The Whigs had
chained the king and made the Commons supreme. Their
mttier was at an end.
Being in this state of stagnation it was inevitable that
they should be torn into fragments by schism as soon as
party discipline should become relaxed. In no sense had
they ever been a national party as the Tories were. No
state Church was at their back. Now that all fear of
Popery and the Pretender had passed away, there was no
religious enthusiasm to unite their followers. For military
conquest they had no inclination, having gained little
credit in the recent war. Even the preservation of peace,
by which Sir Robert Walpole had retained the support of
the commercial classes, no longer seemed an imperative
necessity in the eyes of the British merchant*, for he realised
that his country had vast interests at stake, and must take
its part in the world-wide struggle for empire. Although
the Whig party had done splendid service to the nation
in abolishing absolutism and establfehing constitutional
government, it had lost all sense of initiative, and the great
families who directed its policy took a part in public affairs
merely to increase their share of place and power. With
the death of Pelham the contest for the spoils of victory '
began in grim earnest, and the disintegration of the old Whig
party was at hand. For the present, however, the Tories,
who possessed neither a leader nor a policy, were incapable
of taking advantage of their opportunities.
Five statesmen now dominated the political stage.
Thomas Pelham Holies, Duke of Newcastle, who succeeded
his late brother as Prime Minister, owed his position solely
to his great parliamentary influence. His Vast wealth and
dexterity as a party manager had enabled him to gratify
an insatiable craving for power. In conduct and demeanour
he was one of the most grotesque politicians of his time— ^
a fussy, envious, irritable buffoon, whose feverish tempera-
ment aniP incoherent speech had made him the object of
1754] POLITICAL AMBITIONS 31
universal ridicule. Yet he was jovial and honest, and
though everyone laughed at him, probably he had fewer
enemies than any statesman of the time. There was some-
thing almost dog-like and pathetic in his devotion to the
king, and there was more than a suggestion of the canine
also in his whole disposition. Always noisy, excitable, and
impulsive, it was well said of him that “ he appeared to have
lost half an hour in the morning and to be running after it
all the rest of the day.” It was fortunate for Newcastle
that the Lord Chancellor, Philip Yorke, Earl of Hardwicke,
the greatest perhaps of all English lawyers and a politician
ol infinite sagacity, was his firm ally and most loyal friend,
bound to him by ties of gratitude since early youth. In the
Upper House Lord Hardwicke was without a rival, being
beyond all question the most formidable debater amongst
the peers, and his lofty eloquence, shrewd judgment, and
legal acumen had been of incalculable service to the Whig
party during two administrations.
The three othef statesmen who, together with New-
castle and his mentor, exercised the greatest influence in
politics were Commoners. William Murray, the new
Attorney-General, a Scotsman of noble family and one of the
’most graceful of orators, might have reached the highest
position if he had possessed the temperament of a states-
man, but he had little Trelish for the hard blows that are
inseparable from a political career, and believing that his
talents were best suited to his own profession, he had already'
detej-mined to take his seat upon the Bench at the earliest
opportunity^ Henry Fox, the Secretary at War, was a
professional politician without disguise, an admirable man
Qf business, a skilful debater and a capable party manager,
but absolutely unscrupulous in his parliamentary conduct,
making two things only the objects of his public life — a
j fortune and a peerage. William Pitt, the Paymaster of
^ 111*1756 he became Lord Chief Justice of the King’s Beifch with the
title of Baron Mansfield.
32 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1754
the Forces, the only statesman who inspired enthusiasm
in the country and incomparably the greatest force in the
House of Commons, was at this moment entirely out of
favour both with his party and with the king, but his
association with Lord Temple gave him the assistance of a
small but influential band of followers, and no Government
could afford to exclude the Great Commoner.
It was as a whole-hearted supporter of the Newcastle
ministry that John Wilkes presented himself to the electors
of Berwick, with a letter of recommendation in his pocket
from George Grenville, one of the Lords of the Treasury.*
In a speech to the Guild of the town on the i6th of April
he expressed many fine sentiments in praise of virtue and
patriotism, and declared that “ as he would never take a
bribe so he would never offer one,” a pointed allusion to
the methods of his opponents, who were supposed to be
engaged in a wholesale traffic in votes.* The other candi-
dates were Thomas Watson, who had represented the con-
stituency for many years, and Johrf Delaval, one of the
dashing Delavals of Seton Delaval near Newcastle, a
family whose reckless pranks were as well known to London
society as to the people of his own county.® In a certain
Robert Taylor, a Berwick bookseller, who delivered a'
notable speech on his behalf, Wilkes found an earnest sup-
porter, but although he strove to capture the Nonconformist
vote, most of the canny north-countrymen regarded him
coldly. It was impossible that they could have any sym-
pathy with this ostentatious young cockney, whose gpudy
suits of red or blue, laced with gold, seemed 'chosen on
purpose to offend their homely ideas. They looked with
' Add. MS. 30,877, f. I ; Public Advertiser^ Nov. 9, 1763.
2 Life of Wilkes^ J. Alrnon, i. 25 ; Gentleman's Magazine (1768J, p. 123-
* The Delaval Papers^ J. Robinson; Mems. of Tate Wilkinson, ii-J
H. Walpole's Letters (Toynbee) ; Rems, of H. Angelo, passim; Mems. oj
N. Wraxall (Wheatley), iv. 421; Mems, of R, L, Edgeworth, pp. 75-101; Wovi^
of S. Foote^fi. cxxii.-iv. ; Town and Country Magazine, ii. 570 ; hi. 408, 420 ;
V. 289 ; ix. 234, 507, 597 ; xxi. 485 ; Hist, of Doddington, R. E. G, Cole-
1754]
POLITICAL AMBITIONS
33
suspicion upon his black squinting eyes ; and his sallow
face with its coarse twisted mouth, from which many teeth
were missing, must have appeared the most ill-favoured
that they had ever beheld. His speech was strange to
them ; they could scarcely comprehend his thick inarti-
culate utterance.
In spite of every disadvantage, however, he made a
better fight than was expected. His wit and good-humour
won many friends to his side ; his restless energy and
cunning tactics caused some uneasiness to his opponents.
It is said that when the Delavals chartered a vessel to
bring up a number of their London voters by sea, Wilkes
bribed the captain of the ship to land his passengers on the
coast of Norway, whence they were unable to reach Berwick
till after the election was over.’ Still, all his efforts were
useless, and when the poll was closed on the i6th of April
he had secured only 192 votes, nearly two hundred behind
the first of his rivals.'* The enterprise was believed to have
cost him between three and four thousand pounds.
Undaunted by his defeat, he decided to petition against
the return of his opponents, “ alleging that Thomas Watson
and John Delaval did* by bribery, in the most flagrant,
•notorious, and public manner, and in the most open and
daring violation of the laws . . . corrupt and procure
many of the Burgesses*. . . whereby they did obtain a
majority upon the poll.” * In September he paid a second
visit to Berwick in order to collect evidence of illegal prac-
tice^ making a short tour also into Scotland, where he
sought the* acquaintance of David Hume, the philosopher, for
he never missed an opportunity of cultivating the friendship
of a man of letters. At this period of his life a large number
of his intimates were of the Scottish race, and he selected
^ Rems, of Charles Butler^ i. 144. The same story is told of the
delavals; vide Reprenentative History, by T. H. B. Oldfield, iv. 313.
* Public Advertiser, April 30, 1754.
“ Journals of the House of Commons, xxvii. 30--31,
C
[*754
34 life of JOHN WILKES
a north-country barrister, named Alexander Campbell, to
present his petition to Parliament. The choice, so the
story goes, proved an unfortunate one. Either the advocate
was dissatisfied with his cause or with his client, for he
declined to appear in the case, and when Wilkes waited upon
him to demand the return of the retaining fee he was met
by a refusal.
“The law is open to you,” observed the barrister,
coolly.
“ No, sir,” retorted Wilkes, “ I will not go to law with
you. ... I have brought my advocate with me. Draw — ”
he continued, laying his hand on his sword ; “ before I quit
this room I will either have my money or I will have satis-
faction.” ^
A glance at the resolute eye and the obstinate jaw of
his visitor convinced the lawyer that he was dealing with
a man who had no sense of fear, and he returned the fee of
fifty guineas without further parley.
The Berwick petition came before the House of Commons
on the 25th of November; John Delaval, proud, cynical,
devil-may-care, was in his place, and replied to the allega-
tions against him in a speech full of wit and humour, pour-
ing a torrent of gibes and sneers upon the petitioner, striving
to overwhelm him with ridicule. It happened, however,
that Pitt was sitting in the gallery, and for some time past
the Great Commoner had shown much partiality for Wilkes,
whom he had often met in the company of Thomas Potter
and Lord Temple, being fascinated from the first by his
sprightly conversation and ingenious mind.* 'His interest
in the discussion, excited at the outset merely by friendship,
gradually deepened into a feeling of indignation as he
listened to the laughter with which the facetious sallies of
John Delaval were received by his listeners. Hastening
downstairs, he entered the House and flimg himself into
1 Publiii. Advertiser, July 9, 1768 ; Wilkes’s Jest Book, pp. 8-9.
2 Add. MS. 30,867, f. 103.
.;54] POLITICAL AMBITIONS 35
the debate. Assuming an air of the loftiest scorn, he re-
proached his fellow-members for their levity, lamenting
that they should have given way to laughter when such a
subject as bribery and corruption was mentioned, warning
them solemnly that such conduct would prejudice their
honour and their dignity in the eyes of the nation. It was
such a speech as a schoolmaster might have delivered in
his form-room, and the Commons of Great Britain, whom
the voice of Pitt always hushed into silence, listened to the
scolding like schoolboys, each fearing to speak lest the
thunder of the orator should fall upon his head. Even the
bold Wilkes himself, who was listening to the proceedings
outside the bar, confessed that until he realised that the
Great Commoner was speaking in his favour he felt as
terrified as when he used to be menaced by Mr. Worsley’s
birch-rod, and Pitt’s chief rival, the unemotional Henry
Fox, declared that everyone allowed it to be the finest
speech that was ever made.' In consequence of this in-
valuable aid everytfiing promised well for the success of
Wilkes’s appeal, and he wrote in high spirits to tell his
friend Dell that he had got " his parliamentary business
into the House,” but the hearing of the evidence was ex-
■ tended over a period of many months, and at last, weary
of the delay and intent upon new schemes, he decided to
withdraw the petition.* •
With her husband’s political ambitions Mrs. Wilkes had
not the least sympathy. Both she and her mother were
annoyed that he should have squandered a large sum of
money updh what they regarded as a foolish adventure.
They resented his long absence from home, and in their
opinion rich nobles and distinguished statesmen were un-
* Rems, of Charles Butler, i. 142-4 ; Mems. of Lord Waldegrave, p. 147 ;
Mems. of Reign of George II, H. Walpole, i. 408 ; Grenville Papers, i. 126 ;
^Chatham, Lord Rosebery, p. 358.
’ Wilkes withdrew his petition on Feb. 5, 1756. Journals of House of
Commons, xxvii. 430 ; Representative Hist, of Great Britaip, T. H. B.
Oldfield, iv. 312,
36 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1754-55
suitable companions for a man in his position. For some
time his profuse expenditure had caused them much un-
easiness, and they feared that his new friends would lead
him into greater extravagances still. One of the chief
results of the Berwick election was the first serious dis-
agreement between Wilkes and his wife.^
There were compensations, however, which more than
atoned for the disturbance of his domestic peace. The
celebrated William Pitt smiled upon him; nay more, he
was already on terms of intimacy with the great man,
who delighted in his society and declared that he was the
most “ wicked and agreeable ” fellow that he had ever
met.® Indeed the proud and austere minister, who ap-
peared to the world as the most solemn and aloof of mankind,
could be a very jocular companion in real life, and when
Thomas Potter, his fidus Achates, read to him some of
Wilkes’s ribald parodies, he laughed as heartily as the
dissolute barrister himself, declaring that the wit and fancy
of the verses were entitled to very high praise.® Gout and
the affairs of state prevented the Great Commoner from
meeting his new acquaintance as frequently as he might
have done, but he recognised his ability and was glad to
number him among his disciples.®
In spite of Wilkes’s love of letters his restless tempera-
ment had prevented him hitherto from any sustained
literary effort, but he and Potter often exchanged similar
poems to those that had amused William Pitt, and in the
summer of 1755 they appear to have collaborated in a inore
ambitious work. Like all the previous productions of the
wicked pair, this effusion was grossly indecent, being an
obscene parody of Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man, imitated
* Lift of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 28 ; cf. Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter,
i. 128.
* Add. MS. 30,867, f. 103.
® Add. MS. 30,867, f. 103; Cf. Gentleman's Magazine, xxxvii. 247 1
Lije of Wil\es, J. Almon, iii. 191.
* C/. Add. MS. 30,877, i, 5.
.755] POLITICAL AMBITIONS 37
almost line for line. Probably neither of them knew which
of the two had suggested the idea, but the division of labour
seems to be indicated in a letter written by Potter to his
friend from Exeter on the 31st of July :
“ Who your Mrs. M. is . . . I am at a loss to guess. I
would reverse the letter and attempt the Essay on Woman
without the hope of having a Commentator. They are a
cursed race and often marr the text. Take notice I do not
mean to censure your annotations. Thou art no marr
text. But you sometimes supply a text when without
your assistance it would be defective." '
Wlien the poem was finished it was entitled “ An Essay
on Woman,” as Potter had proposed it should be, and it
was dedicated to Miss Fanny Murray, who for nine years
past had been the most famous courtesan in London, and
who perhaps was the Mrs. M. whose name Wilkes had men-
tioned to his friend in connection with the parody. It
opens with the following apostrophe :
“ Awake, my Fanny, leave all meaner things ;
This morn shall prove what rapture . . brings !
Let us (since life can little more supply
Than just a . . ^ and then we die)
Expatiate free o’er that loved scene of man,
A mighty maze, for mighty . to scan :
. A wild, where Paphian Thorns promiscuous shoot
Wh«re flowers the . . . but yields no fruit.” *
The verses .were embellished with facetious footnotes,
which the title-page announced to be written by the Rev.
' Add. MS. 30,880 B. f. 3.
I ^ An Essay on Woman and other pieces . . . London. Privately
printed, September 1871 ; cf. Index Librorum Prohibitorum, Pisanus
Fraxi.[H. S. Ashbee], pp. 229-31; cf. Add. MS. 30,883, 150-5;
Crown Roll, No. 248, Court of King's Bench, Public Record Office.
38 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1755
Dr. William Warburton, whose edition of Pope’s works,
full of pompous annotations, had been published four years
previously, but the commentator obviously was Wilkes
himself, delighted at the opportunity of ridiculing the
pretentious clergyman whom his friends Edwards and Potter
loved to make the butt of their sarcasms. It had no
literary merit, being a stupid and indecent paraphrase of
the original, but the collaborators often read it for the
amusement of their friends, and Wilkes is said to have
transcribed a copy in his neat, irregular hand-writing,
which he inserted page by page into a small edition
of Pope’s Essay on Man} Luckily, its authors made no
attempt to get it printed.
During the same year Wilkes perpetrated another jeu
d'esprit that created much amusement, though it was mere
tilting at a windmill. Johnson’s famous Dictionary, which
appeared on the 15th of March, contained the extraordinary
statement that “ the letter H seldom, perhaps never, begins
any but the first syllabic.” It was too ^ood an opportunity
to miss, and Wilkes, whose literary and political sympathies
were entirely hostile to those of the learned doctor, com-
posed the following travesty, which soon became famous
all over the town : “ The author of this remark must be
a man of a quick appre-hension and compre-hensive genius ;
but I can never forgive his un-handsome be-haviour to the
poor knight-hood, priest-hood, and widow-hood, nor his
in-humanity to all man-hood. . . It is doubtful
whether the Lexicographer discovered the author of the
badinage, but he did not deign to alter the ‘passage in
question for many years, and as was his custom through
1 Acid. MS. 22,132, f. 217; Journals of the House of LordSy xxx. 416;
Guildhall MS.y 214, 2, vol. i. “ A genuine account of the Proceedings
against Mr. Wilkes for being the author, printer, and publisher of the
Essay on Woman”
* BoswelVs Life of Johnsony G. Birkbeck Hill, i. 300 ; Life of Frederick
ReynoldSy i. 45-6 ; Hist, of LondoUy B. I.-ambcrt, iv. 463. There was a
copy of the satire in the Wilkes MSS., sold at Sotheby’s on Aug. i, I 9 ^ 3 >
the first few lines of which are given above.
POLITICAL AMBITIONS
1755]
39
life, he would not gratify the author of the attack by writing
an answer to it.
It was during this year also that Wilkes determined to
contest the borough of Aylesbury at the next election. A
political crisis had occurred, in which some of his friends
were principally concerned, and there was much shuffling
of Government places. Both Legge, the Chancellor of
Exchequer, and Pitt, the Pajnmaster, had been dismissed
from office because of their opposition to the foreign policy
of the king ; while Fox, who, in the parliamentary fashion
of the time, had been assisting the Great Commoner in his
attacks upon their fellow-ministers for many months, had
come to the rescue of Newcastle’s moribund administra-
tion, eager to embrace the opportunity of making himself
Secretary of State. It was the first serious breach in the
Whig ranks since the death of Henry Pelham, one too
that was fraught with grave consequences to the party, for
Pitt was now the brother-in-law of Lord Temple, and had
the powerful Grenville connection at his back. For many
a long year faction and Whiggism were synonymous terms.
Naturally, Wilkes took sides with the mutineers, but
apart from all motives of friendship, the wonderful political
sagacity that never deserted him all through his life must
have convinced him that it was to his interest to remain a
follower of the Great Cpmmoner. It seemed probable that
there would be a contest at Aylesbury, for it was whispered
that John Willcs, through the influence of his father, would
obtain some office as a reward for his loyalty to the
Governniest.
“ I am determined to oppose him,” Wilkes declared in
a letter to the .invaluable Dell, “ and will attack him with
the utmost spirit, particularly the true Aylesbury way of
palmistry. Be assured I will at any expense carry my
point.” ^
In each of his communications to his faithful aide-de-
* Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, Nov. 24, 1755.
40 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1755
camp the incorruptible candidate of Berwick-on-Tweed
reiterated, with unblushing candour, his intentions to pur-
chase the seat.
“ I will sink Willes by weight of metal,” he informed
Dell a few days later, " and we shall be thought heroes to
turn a man out the moment he has kissed hands for a
place.” 1
Unfortunately for the conspirators no election was
necessary, for their old ally did not obtain offtce, but the
incident seems to have resulted in an arrangement whereby
Potter undertook to resign in favour of Wilkes as soon as
he could find another constituency for himself.
Meanwhile, the tranquillity of the dull old house behind
St. Sepulchre’s Church had become seriously disturbed. The
homely Mrs. Wilkes had no more sympathy than before
with her husband’s political ambitions. To her thrifty
mind the corrupt borough of Aylesbury seemed the most
undesirable seat that he could have chosen. The society
of his gay and fashionable companions was distasteful to
her ; their conversation was offensive to her prim, puritan
ideas. Even if she was unaware of his repeated infidelities,
she knew that he had lost all regard for her. As he liimself
acknowledged some years later, “ she possessed his esteem,
but no great share of his tenderness.” *
It was the inevitable result of a manage de convemnee,
doomed to failure from the first. The wife had neither tact
nor charm, and made no effort to retain the affections of
her gay and fickle husband, being wholly destitute of fhe
feminine allurements that should have earned* his fealty.
In tastes, inclination, and conduct the two were totally at
variance. Neither made any allowance for, the deficiencies
of the other. While most of their friends paid due acknow-
' Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, Dec. i, 1755.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 28-9 ; tettevs of Wijkes to his Daughter ^ ^
i. 128 ; The North Briton, W. Bingley, vol. i., Part I, p. Ixxxvi. ; Eurc^^ean
Magazine, x^iii. 17.
. 756 - 57 ] POLITICAL AMBITIONS
41
ledgment to the good qualities of Mrs. Wilkes, not a few
of them were agreed that the fault was not wholly on her
husband’s side. " She is perhaps the woman in the world
the most unfit for him,” it was remarked, “ and the only
one to whom he would not have been an uxorious husband,
for he loves a domestic life.”
The separation, which to those who knew them best
had seemed inevitable for some time, took place at the
end of the summer of 1756. During the whole year Wilkes
had been absent a great deal from home, much engaged
in nursing his constituency, and paying frequent visits to
Bath. Social engagements occupied most of his evenings,
for he was already a man of mark, and his interest in politics
had brought him many new friends. He was a Fellow of
the Royal Society and a member of the famous Beef Steak
Club.i About the beginning of September the ill-mated
couple seemed to have agreed that it was impossible to live
any longer under the same roof, so Wilkes removed to St.
James’s Place, where* he secured “ very elegant lodgings ”
in the house of a certain Mrs. Murray, while his wife con-
tinued to reside with her mother and Mr. Sherbrooke at
Red Lion Court.*
In the following spring an incident occurred that put
an end to all hope of a permanent reconciliation between
the pair. Their daughter Polly, now six years old — a
:inerry, black-eyed little girl, who had been her father’s
idol ever since her birth — ^was taken ill at school with
smallpox. Scarcely any other trouble could have caused
Wilkes more^nxiety. Until all danger was passed he lived
in hourly suspense. During the child’s convalescence he
watched with pathetic eagerness to see if there were any
^ Hist, of the Royal Society, T. Thomson, Appendix XLV. Wilkes was
elected F.R.S. April 13, 1749. Life and Death of the Sublime Society of
Steaks, W. Arnold, p. xix. Wilkes was elected a member of the
®eef Steak Club Jan. f9, 1754.
* London Past and Present, H. B. Wheatley, ii. 296 ; Corr^pondence
of Wilkes and Dell, Oct, Oct. 23, Nov. 23, 1756.
42
[1757
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
scars on her face. He delighted in telling his friends how
patient and good-humoured she had been the whole time.
When at last she had recovered he took her down to Ayles-
bury, as his playfellow for a long summer’s holiday, with
“ two maid-servants solely to attend her.” No father had
ever been more unselfish and devoted. The conduct of
the mother, however, was very different. When the little
girl began to be unwell Wilkes had written to his wife
begging her to go to her daughter at once. As soon as the
crisis was over he had reminded her again that her place
was by the bedside of her child. His appeals fell upon
deaf ears. Either Mrs. Wilkes was not competent to un-
dertake the duties of a nurse, or she feared the infection,
or perhaps she was jealous of her husband’s love for his
daughter, but whatever may have been the cause of her
neglect, she never once visited the sick girl. And Wilkes,
whose own mother waited upon the invalid every day
with loving care, bitterly resented the inhuman conduct of
his wife, which in his eyes was as infamous as a breach of
her marriage vows.^ Thenceforth the pair never lived
together, and a formal deed of separation was drawn up
by the family lawyers.
Soon afterwards the chief ambition of Wilkes’s life was at
length gratified. A vacancy occurred at Bath, whereupon
Pitt, who had long wished to represent the city which he
was compelled through ill-health to visit so frequently,
gladly accepted a unanimous invitation to become its
member, resigning the family borough of Oakhampten in
favour of Thomas Potter. In spite of his‘’ihatrimonial
fiasco there was nothing to prevent Wilkes from seizing
the opportunity, which this combination of politics and
hygiene afforded him, to offer himself as candidate for the
borough of Aylesbury. For many months his plans had
been carefully matured and his popularity with the towns-
^ Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, April 19, April 26, May 3, May
1757 *
1757 ]
POLITICAL AMBITIONS
43
folk was still unimpaired, “ palmistry,’* as he had euphe-
mistically expressed it, having made them his most obedient
servants.
“ I will give two guineas per man, with the promise of
whatever more offers,” he informed the faithful Dell, when
he wrote to tell him that he was standing for the consti-
tuency, and he went on to add, ” If you think two guineas
not enough I will offer three or even five.” ^
Apparently five guineas proved sufficient, and on the
6th of July 1757, the incorruptible politician, who had
boasted that he would never offer a bribe to any man, was
elected member of Parliament for the town of Aylesbury
without opposition.^
^ Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, June 22, 1757.
* Puhhc AdveviiseYy July 8, 1757 ; Hist, of Aylesbury ^ R. Gibbs, p. 220.
CHAPTER IV
MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY
1757-1761
I -^HE new member for Aylesbury commenced his
parliamentary career at an auspicious moment,
for the choleric George II, after struggling vainly
against the inevitable, had been compelled at last
to admit the Great Commoner and his friends as members
of a new ministry, under the nominal leadership of the
Duke of Newcastle. Indeed, the Grenville party was the
most powerful faction in the Government. Temple and his
brother, George Grenville, as well as the recently disgraced
Legge, all held high office ; while Pitt, who had become
Secretary of State for the first time, was for all practical
purposes the head of the administration. His old rival
Fox, to whom the acquisition of a fortune was of far more
importance than political prestige, had chosen the lucrativt
post of Paymaster of the Forces, and was prepared to
acquiesce in any policy that wobld afford him an oppor-
tunity of making money. To all appearance the friends
of Wilkes were destined to a long reign of power.
The tactful John did not lose a moment in brtngin
himself before the notice of his leader, and the morning
after the Aylesbury election he posted up tb town for the
sole purpose of calling upon Pitt, witlf whom, however,
he did not obtain an interview. A few days later he
wrote to inform the minister of his visit to St. James’s
Square.
“ I was desirous of so early an opportunity of saying
how greatly I wish to be numbered among those who
44
,757] MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 45
the highest esteem and veneration for Mr. Pitt ” ; he con-
tinued, " I am very happy now to contribute more than
my warmest wishes for the support of his wise and excellent
measures and my ambition will ever be to have my
parliamentary conduct approved by the ablest minister, as
well as the first character, of the age. I live in the hope of
doing my country some small services at least ; and I am
sure the only way of doing so is by a steady support of your
jasures.” ^
Pitt appears to have been gratified by this homage,
for he still had a soft comer in his heart for the vivacious
jfoung squire, whose lively wit and engaging manners had
>0 often diverted his mind from the cares of statecraft, and
iie penned an early answer to the letter, assuring his follower
that he had a sincere regard for him, and flattering him by
1 reference to his “ great and shining talents.” * Lord
Temple’s brother, the dull and industrious George Grenville,
Treasurer of the Navy, also wrote to congratulate Wilkes
3 n the day of his unopposed return, remarking that he was
?lad "to be the first to felicitate and embrace his new
brother member.” ’
The Alyesbury election, together with the arrangements
feat occasioned it, was believed to have cost the sum of
(7000, and Wilkes, whose personal extravagance seems to
have been, increasing year by year, began to have large
dealings with Hebrew moneylenders, his transactions with
Isaac Fernandes Silva in particular bringing to the unfor-
tunate debtor infinite opprobrium in after years.* The
corrupt boroTlgh that had returned him to Parliament also
threatened to prove an expensive luxury. It was not long
indeed before he* was wont to declare that a gentleman
^ Add, MS. 30,867, f. 138 ; Chatham Correspondence^ i. 239.
’ Add. MS. 30,877, f. 5.
^ ® Add. MS. 30,877, f. 4.
Life of Wilkes^ J! Almon, i. 35 ; ii. 55 ; cf. Gentleman* s Magazine,
‘XXX., Part I, p. 499; Controversial Letter of Wilkes and Hor^e (1771),
P« 206,
46 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1758
never ought to represent the constituency in which he
resided, for his constituents would prove too heavy a tax
upon his table and his wine cellar. Soon after his election,
in spite of his financial embarrassments, he left the lodgings
in St. James’s Place and took a lease of No. 13 Great
George Street, a commodious house at the western comer
of Little George Street, a fashionable quarter of the town.'
It was the first time that Wilkes’s residence, both at Ayles-
bury and in London, did not happen to be next door to a
church, a circumstance which caused some amusement to
his friends, for he had long since earned a reputation for
profanity owing to his habit of jesting upon sacred
things.
In the course of the next year he made an effort to obtain
a restitution of conjugal rights, issuing a writ of habeas-
corpus to compel his wife to appear before the Court of
King’s Bench. In the deed of separation she had surrendered
a large portion of her estate to her husband with the pro-
vision that he was to allow her an ifleome of two hundred
pounds, and it was alleged by his enemies that he had
brought the law suit in order to compel her to relinquish
this pittance as well. There is no proof, however, that
this was his motive, which, by reason of the smallness of
the annuity, appears an inadequate one. When the case
was heard at Westminster Hall if seemed far more probable
that Wilkes was playing for higher stakes, being anxious to
compel his Avife to live with him again in order to withdraw
her from the influence of her mother and her uncle, s^ that
the large fortune which she would inherit sooner or later
might come into his hands. The attempt -was a failure,
for Mrs. Meade still had absolute power over her daughter’s
mind, and Wilkes was warned by the judge that since his
wife wished to abide by the terms of their deed of separation
> Westminster Rate Books, Xmas 1757. Cf. Grenville Papers, i. 22s:
Lecture at the Surveyor’s Institution by Mr. Julian Rogers on Jan. 22,
1912. Tkere is a picture of the house in the Satirical Prints at the Britist
Museum, No. 4055.
1758] MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 47
any further attempt to compel her to live with him would
be regarded as contempt of court.^
Fortunately for his happiness he had the custody of his
little girl, the love of whom was the grand passion of his
life, the one virtue amidst all his profligacy. The affection
between the two was a most beautiful thing to behold, for the
child’s devotion to the father equalled his fondness for her,
and the greatest joy of each was found in the society of the
other. It was agreed by his friends that Wilkes was always
seen at his best when his daughter was present, his con-
versation never being more bright and sparkling than when
she was listening to it, while he appeared ever on the alert
lest a word should be uttered that might wound her feelings
or offend her modesty.® And the little Polly, although her
father made so much of her, seems to have remained quite
unspoilt, a lovable, simple-minded girl ; but she had little
fondness for her unsympathetic mother, who made no effort
to win her affection, and the child’s visits to Red Lion
Court were an ordeal to both of them. Soon after the
separation of her parents she had been sent to a school
at Chelsea, kept by a Mrs. Aylesworth and a Madame
Becte, where “ a great number of young ladies of the first
fashion in England were educated,” which Wilkes had
chosen after the most careful inquiries on the recommenda-
tion of his friend, Tobias’ Smollett, the novelist, who lived
in the same neighbourhood.®
Naturally, his social position was not damaged in the
least iy his matrimonial misfortunes, for his wife had been
rather a hfi?8rance than a help to him in his efforts to
thrust himself -into society, and the age in which he lived
was not prone to* ostracise a man merely because he was
in the habit of breaking the seventh commandment. During
a second tour in Scotland at the latter end of the summer
^ ^ Reports of Cases in the Court of King*s Benchy Sir James Burrow,
542 ; Life of Wilkes']. Almon, i. 30, 35--7,
European Magazine (1798), p. 229. ^
' Add, MSS. 30,867, f. 135 ; 301875, 28, 30 ; 30,879, ft. i, 3.
48 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1758
of this year, he was invited by Archibald, Duke of Argyll,
to stay a few days at Inveraray, which recently had been
rebuilt, and Wilkes, with his wonted energy, rode thither
on horseback all the way from Edinburgh.' The visit was
an agreeable one, for he and his host had many taste;
in common, and he was much flattered by his kind recep
tion. Some of the Duke’s retainers congratulated hin
on being such a favourite with his Grace.
“ It is truly lucky for me,” chuckled Wilkes, who
loved to poke fun in Cockney fashion at his Scottisl
friends, “ for if I had displeased the Duke there is nol
a Campbell among you but would have been read}
to bring John Wilkes’s head to him on a charger. Il
would have been only ‘ Off with his head ! So much foi
Aylesbury.’ ” *
About the same period his reputation among the gentle-
men of his county was considerably enhanced owing to th«
good work that he had done in the reorganisation of tin
militia, a scheme which had been advocated by Pitt foi
many years. He became one of the first and one of the
keenest officers of the Buckinghamshire battalion, the
colonel of which was Sir Francis Dashwood, an amiable
sensualist, who, finding that the member for Aylesbury wasa
kindred spirit, often used to invite him to his home at West
Wycombe Park. There Wilkes often met an old acquaint-
ance, Paul Whitehead by name, a brother member of " the
Sublime Society of Beef Steaks,” who was maintained by
the jovial baronet as a sort of perpetual jester, being, as
was indicated by his roguish eyes and demurd tips, a fello«
of infinite humour. And one day in an interval between
their military duties the genial Dashweod, with a broaii
smile upon his blunt round face, suggested to his friend
John that he should join the famous club of wits and bon'
vivants known as the Monks of St. Francis, who held then
% ^ Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, Sept. 26, 1758.
* BoswelVs Life of Johnson^<^n Birkbeck Hill, iii. 73.
.758-60 MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 49
meetings in an old house on the site of Medmenham Abbey
on the banks of the Thames near Marlow.
It was an exclusive society, only twelve in number,
sybarites all of them, who gathered together frequently
along with their favourite mistresses for feasting and revelry,
and since they were all rabid Protestants, there was often
a mock celebration of religious rites in ridicule of the Church
of Rome. The country folk christened them the Hell-fire
Club, but they themselves were content with the title of
Franciscan monks, which had been chosen as a compliment
;to their founder. Sir Francis Dashwood. Wilkes, who
could match any of the fraternity in lust and profanity,
was easily persuaded to join the society, for besides Paul
Whitehead, who was secretary to the order, many of his
acquaintances were members. Among them were several
well-known country gentlemen, most of whom lived in the
neighbourhood or had Buckinghamsliire connections, such
as Sir John Dashwood-King, brother of the president. Sir
Thomas Stapleton and Sir William Stanhope, Dr. Benjamin
Bates of Missenden, Bubb Doddington, a friend of Sir Francis,
hs well as a generous patron of the impecunious Whitehead,
and Lord Sandwich, who, in the language of the day, was
fl the saddest dog ” of them all.‘
In later years, Wilkes himself wrote an account of the
ciety, which shows that*the iniquities of the Medmenham
nonks had been exaggerated very little by the testimony
^f their contemporaries. The motto of the club, borrowed
rom jthe inscription on Rabelais’ Abbey of Thelema, and
nscrited oVCV the front door, was Fay ce que voudras, and
naked statue of Venus, stooping to pull a thorn from her
oot, stood within a cave in the garden. To the Bona
Others, said to have been members on less conclusive evidence,
Sir Francis Duflicld, the owner of the Abbey, Henry Lovibond
Urns, Richard Hopkins, Charles Churchill, Robert Lloyd, Thomas
•ttcr, and John Hal? Stevenson. That Wilkes belonged to the club
* P'^^ved by a marginal n6te in his own handwriting on page ^09 of a
^Py of the History of the Late Minority in the British Museum.
D
50 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES {1758-61
Dea, as the Goddess of Love was termed in the jargon of
the “ Franciscans,” they were accustomed to offer libations
in the midst of their symposiums, acclaiming her as the
presiding deity of their revelries. Sir Francis Dashwood
is alleged to have possessed a communion cup for this
purpose, fashioned in a ribald design. The so-called
” mystic rites ” were profane orgies in celebration of venery,
while the establishment was conducted as a travesty of a
monastic institution, religion and morality being burlesqued
continually. Scenes of drunkenness and debauchery took
place at every meeting, and women of the town were
present at all the feasts. " The garden, the grove, the
orchard, the neighbouring woods,” Wilkes confessed un-
blushingly in his description of the place, " all spoke the
loves and frailties of the younger monks, who seemed at
least to have sinned naturally.” ‘
Practical jokes were a favourite amusement amongst
the dissolute fraternity, Wilkes distinguishing himself in
this respect on several occasions. Ctace, while his brother
members were holding high revelry he and one or two
fellow-conspirators lowered a sweep down the wide chimney
of the banqueting-hall to the terror of the tipsy symposiasts,
who believed that the Prince of Darkness had come for thein
at last. At another time he is said to have dressed a
baboon " in the fantastic garb in which childish imagination
* The Poems . . . and, Life . . . of Paul Whitehead, E. Thompson,
xxxii.-xxxix. ; Letters to and from Mr. Wilkes (1769), pp. 17-20 ; History
of Buckinghamshire y G. Lipscomb, iii. 615 ; Chrysaly or The Adventures
of a Guineay C. Johnstone, iii. 231-50; Olio of Biographical and Literary
AnecdoteSy W. Davies, p. 13 ; Diaries of Mrs. Philip pp. 2&3, 379»
381 ; Life of Frederick ReynoldSy i. 28 ; Life of WilkeSy J. Almon, iii. 60-3 1
Cat. of Satirical Prints in the British Museum y iv. 306-^7 ; The Candidate^
Charles Churchill, 1. 695 ; Toum and Country Magaiiney i. 122, v. 245-^»
vi. 9 ; Memoirs of the Reign of George Illy H. Walpole, i. 137-8 ; Journal
of the Reign of George Illy H. Walpole, ii, 563 ; Notes and Queries y i ith series,
i. 31 ; History of Aylesburyy R. Gibbs, pp. 238, 424; Annual Register
(i797)» P- 377 I Pnblic Advertiser y Oct. 29, 1772 ; Morning Posty Aug. 22,
1776 ; Morning Heraldy Dec. 16, 1781 ; Political Register y iii. 43. Thereui’
a pictui^sque account in Highways and Byways in Buckinghamshire y by
Clement Shorter, pp. 202 5.
,759] MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 51
clothes devils,” and to have let it out of a large chest in
which he had concealed it while the brethren were in the
midst of their sacrilegious ceremonials.* There was always
mirth and excitement in the picturesque old abbey when
Jack of Aylesbury, as the brethren called him, was present
at the feast.
Although the age was tolerant enough to breaches of
morality most of the Medmenham monks were regarded
by contemporary opinion as past-masters of vice. No cir-
cumstances in the life of John Wilkes did more to increase
his reputation for profligacy than the fact that he had been
a member of the club on the banks of the Thames.
When he had been a member of Parliament for nearly
two years Wilkes found an opportunity of doing an act of
kindness on behalf of Samuel Johnson, of which, with his
usual good nature, he hastened to take advantage, in spite
of the fact that the great lexicographer, who hated both
his politics and his morals, was one of the few distinguished
authors who did not tare to be his friend. In the spring
of 1759 Francis Barber, the doctor’s black servant, to whom
he was much attached, was seized by a press-gang and carried
on board a man-of-war. As soon as he learnt what had
happened, Tobias Smollett, the surly, warm-hearted Scotch
novelist, who was a great friend of Wilkes, like so many of
his countrymen, wrote to the member for Aylesbury, telling
him that " the great Cham of literature ” was “ in deep
distress,” and requesting him to appeal to the Lords of the
Admii^lty for the release of the pressed lackey. Without
a moment’s^hesitation Wilkes put the case before the
authorities, who gave instructions for Barber’s immediate
discharge, but then: order, owing to some mischance, was
not carried out until more than twelve months had elapsed.
Smollett, who must have known of the jeu d’ esprit with
regard to the letter H, and imagined no doubt tW “ the
' Life and Times of Frederick Reynolds y i. 28 ; Chrysaly or The^ Adven-
tures of a Guineay C, Johnstone, vol. iii. 240-2.
52 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1757-61
great Cham’s ” dislike of the satirist was caused by the satire
instead of being an honest aversion against one whom he
regarded as a bad man, was full of admiration for the
magnanimity of Wilkes.
“ Your generosity with respect for Johnson,” he wrote
on hearing that steps were being taken for Barber’s release,
“ shall be the theme of our applause and thanksgiving.”
Nevertheless, his knowledge of human nature must
have made it clear to him that the learned doctor and Jack
of Aylesbury, at this period of their lives at any rate, could
be nothing else but the bitterest enemies.'
To the surprise of those who were aware of his great
talents Wilkes made little or no impression upon the House
of Commons during the first four years after his election.
Apparently, he was content to remain for the most part
a silent member, never obtruding in a debate of any im-
portance, and on the few occasions on which he opened
his lips he was voted dull and uninteresting.* Yet, although
he possessed no ready fluency, he cotild compose an admir-
able set oration, and many of the first parliamentarians ol
the day were wholly dependent upon this means of address-
ing the House. Characteristic sloth, however, deterred him
from these laborious methods, for in spite of his active mind
he was now a slave to the pursuit of pleasure ; while, owing
to his fastidious taste, he shrailk from making the usual
clumsy attempts to improve his oratory by impromptu
speaking.
Other reasons may have persuaded him that he^>would
reap no material advantage in gaining the ear 61 Parliament.
The greatest abilities, as he was well aware, could not raise
a man to a high position in the state unless he was of ancient
lineage or allied to a noble house. No doubt, he realised
that if Henry Fox had not married a daughter of the Duke
1 Boswell's Life of Johnsofiy G. Birkbeck 348 ; Life of Wilkes,
J. Almon, i. 46-9 ; Johnsonian Gleanings, A. L. Reade, Part II, pp. I2-14'
2 Lifters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), v. 315 ; Memoirs of the Reign oj |
George II J, H. Walpole, i. 142,
. 757-60 MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 53
of Richmond, he might have been a prominent politician,
but in all probability never would have become a minister
of the Crown. It was obvious, even in the case of Pitt
himself, and this was scarcely a fair example, that the alliance
with Lady Hester Grenville had been of incalculable help
in his parliamentary career, without the prestige of which
he might never have been accepted as Secretary of State.
The cider Craggs, who was the sole example of a man un-
connected with an aristocratic family attaining office (and
he came of a good family of country gentlemen), had lived
the life of a party hack, owing all his success to his genius
for figures. Wilkes, who had no financial ability and who
loathed drudgery, knew well enough that although the
nobility of England were pleased to accept him as a friend,
to laugh at his jests, and entertain him in their houses, they
would never consent to allow him to take an important
part in the government of the country. There was no
pusillanimity in his view of the situation, but his mind was
essentially a practicaf one, and he had no desire to strive
after the unattainable.
Thus, during the four glorious years of the Pitt-Newcastle
administration Wilkes remained a humble unit of his party
finknown perhaps to half the House, giving his vote loyally
in support of the Government whenever it was required,
never taking part in debate without the approval of his
leaders. Already he had made up his mind whither ambi-
tion ought to lead him, being eager to obtain a rich governor-
ship t)r a l^rative embassy, so that he might obtain relief
from the burden of debt that threatened to overwhelm him.
It was a misfortune that there should be this waste of great
talents, for no ofte was more prescient in his judgment of
political events, nor held a finger more closely upon the
pulse of the country. These four years, too, were the most
splendid in the aqpals of Great Britain. All over the world
the brave French nation, owing to the incapacity of its
statesmen, not because of any lack of valour on the part
[>759
54 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
of its soldiers and its sailors, had suffered a crushing defeat.
In the Far East the victories of John Company, under the
leadership of Robert Clive, had left England without a
European rival as the suzerain of India. In North America
the British arms had been triumphant everywhere, and that
vast continent was secured for all time to the English-
speaking race. A series of great naval battles had made
the fleets of Britain supreme in every sea. On the con-
tinent King Frederick of Prussia, aided by the armies and
the subsidies of England, had restored the balance of power
that had been threatened for so long by the ambitions of
France, fulfilling the prediction of Pitt that he “ would
conquer America in Germany.” And the timid Whigs,
while they were wise enough to acclaim the policy of the
Great Commoner as a party triumph, looked with dismay
upon the wave of patriotism that had swept over the
country, feeling that the tradition of the sect had been
outraged, and that their new leader was borrowing their
majority in order to realise the alien doctrine of imperialism,
Naturally, they seized the first chance of overthrowing Pitt
and all his works.
At Whitsuntide in the year 1759 Wilkes was elected
" the people's ” church-warden for the parish of St. Mar-
garet, Westminster, the difficulty in finding church officers
overbalancing any prejudices tha\ there might have been
against his moral character.^ Moreover, he was a regular
attender at every Sunday morning service, his home being
scarcely a hundred yards’ distant from his plac^of wofchip,
and as yet his fellow-parishioners probably were not aware
of his connection with the Medmenham monks! All through
his life, in spite of his fondness for posing eTs a pagan, Wilkes
was ever ready to take his share in parochial work. "I
remain sound in the faith,” he assured his daughter some
years later, “ and I will keep to my good, orthodox moth%
^ InfiJirmation kindly given by the Very Rev. H. Hensley Henson fwin
the records of St. Margaret’s, Westminster.
,760] MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 55
the Church of England, to the last moment of— its legal
establishment.’’ * As a churchwarden, however, he did not
please the parish. At the end of the year he was not
mentioned in the usual vote of thanks, though his colleague
was praised warmly, nor was he nominated for re-election,
as was the custom at the time.*
Towards the end of the next year the death of George II,
which took place on the 25th of October, 1760, set every poli-
tician thinking out his plans in view of a general election.
The situation at Aylesbury was complicated by the intrusion
of a third candidate, a privy councillor named Wellbore Ellis,
who had come forward under the auspices of his father-in-
law, Sir William Stanhope, one of the Medmenham monks
and the member for the county. For some time an anxious
correspondence had been passing between Wilkes and Dell,
since the returning officer foresaw that the new develop-
ment was certain to increase the inevitable charges of
“palmistry.” Finally, they decided to limit their atten-
tions to a certain nuftiber of the electors.
" What say you to three hundred trees at five guineas a
tree?" Wilkes wrote to his unpaid election agent, indi-
cating the amount that he was prepared to give for every
•doubtful vote. " Three hundred picked and let the mongrels
yelp their hearts out . . . select three himdred and bid the
others do their worst.” '
In a later letter he confessed to Dell that he was doubt-
ful of his chances.
I know that if any man offers a shilling more that I
shall not Se your member, but you know I never will be
ill-used. ..." I declare they shall have five guineas or else I
desire no vote, but I will never be trampled upon, and I
would as soon sell my estate at Aylesbury and quit the
borough now as hereafter.” *
^ ' Letters of Wilhei to His Daughter, ii. 19.
* 7 'he Westminster RecordSy J. E. Smith (1900), p. 196.
® Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, Dec. 27, 1760, Jan.*i, Jan. 3,
and Jan. 27, 1761,
56 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [176.
At last Willes, the sitting member, perceiving that his
success was hopeless without lavish expenditure, retired
from the struggle, " going out with a stink,” as his late
colleague politely expressed it, leaving his two opponents
in possession of the field. No other candidate was forth-
coming, so when the long-delayed polUng day at last
arrived, on the 25th of March, 1761, Wilkes was returned
as member for Aylesbury without opposition for a second
time along with Wellbore Ellis.^
A few weeks previously he had suffered a bereavement
that hurt him sorely. On the 31st of January his good-
natured father had passed away in the old home in St.
John’s Square.* They had always been the best of friends,
delighting in each other’s society at all times, often even
in late years being companions upon many a holiday tour
or country ramble. Through good report and evil the
affection of Israel Wilkes for his prodigal son had remained
unchanged.
“ My heart is so full of grief,” ran the letter in which
John hastened to convey the news of his loss to the sym-
pathetic Dell, “ for my poor father expired to-day, but
without a pang or a groan, only ceasing to breathe. I wish
that you or I, with every friend we have, may have as quiet*
and peaceable an exit.” ®
The death brought no legacy tcf the needy politician, for
he had long since exhausted his patrimony. “On the
marriage of my son John Wilkes,” ran the Will, “ I con-
veyed to him Lands and Tenements value £330 yearly,
which with the presents I have made him I declare to be
the whole to be given to him.” * Upon Heaton Wilkes, the
yoimgest of the three sons, devolved the task of managing
the family business, and since he had little more commerdaJ
' Public AdoeftiseVy March 27, 1761.
* Gentleman's Magazine ^ xxxi. 44. The register of St. James's, Cler ken-
well, show that Israel Wilkes was buried there on Feb. 5, 1761, ^
® Correspondence of Wilkes and Dell, Jan. 31, 1761.
* Will of Israel Wilkes (40 Cheslyn),
1761] MEMBER FOR AYLESBURY 57
ability than either of his brothers, the consequences were
disastrous.
Having no longer anyliope of receiving another legacy,
John Wilkes sought to disentangle himself from his embar-
rassments by obtaining a place of profit under the Govern-
ment. On the eve of the Aylesbury election he wrote to
Pitt, begging for a post at the Board of Trade, but discover-
ing that there was no suitable vacancy in this department,
he asked to be appointed ambassador at Constantinople,
the late minister having recently resigned.' Unfortunately,
the place had been reserved by the Temple faction for one
of themselves, and, to Wilkes's chagrin, the coveted office
was given to Henry Grenville.^ A worse disappointment was
in store for him. Since the general election it had been
obvious that a parliamentary crisis was at hand. The
Whigs could no longer tolerate the foreign policy of Pitt,
and the new king was eager to place the Government in the
hands of Lord Bute. On the 5th of October the inevitable
rupture took place, add the Great Commoner, whose position
had become untenable, resigned his office. Lord Temple
followed him into retirement, and with the overthrow of
his two best friends Wilkes's last hope of obtaining a lucra-
tive sinecure faded away.
‘ Chatham Correspondence y ii. 93~5 ; Life of WilkeSy J. Almon, i. 57.
* Gentleman* $ Magazine, xxxi. 238.
CHAPTER V
THE POLICY OF GEORGE III
1761-1762
1 '^HE overthrow of Pitt was brought about by one
of the most remarkable combination of parties
that had ever occurred in the history of English
politics. For the moment an ambitious young
king, who was determined to strengthen his prerogative
with the help of the Tories, had joined hands with the most
powerful of the Whig factions in order to stem the tide
of imperialism that was impeding the aspiration of both.
Yet, in everything but hostility to the policy of the Great
Commoner, the two allies were as wide' asimder as the poles.
Since his childhood George the Third had been taught
to accept a theory of monarchy that was hostile to the
principles of the British constitution as laid down by the
Bill of Rights. From his German mother he had learned"
to regard England as though it were a small Teutonic
electorate, and her constant advice, " George, be King,"
had left an indelible impression on his mind. Most of
his tutors had belonged to the High Church party, while
his favourite. Lord Bute, who was the mentor ,,pf his •’boy-
hood, had inspired him with the ambition of realising
Bolingbroke’s conception of " a patriot King,” supreme
over Parliament, even if he had not actually made him a
true believer in the doctrine of divine right. Upon his
accession to the throne, on the death of his grandfather, it
was this same Lord Bute whom George selected as a fellow;
conspirator to help him to realise his aspirations.
At this moment the Whig oligarchy, in spite of its
S8
t
, 76 .] THE POLICY OF GEORGE III 59
apparent strength, was more vulnerable than it had ever
been since the Revolution. Although the leadership of
Pitt, notwithstanding its glorious achievements, had never
been acceptable to the magnates of the party, who were
loyal to the traditions of Walpole and anxious for peace,
the city of London and the great towns, where hitherto the
Whigs had found almost unanimous support, continued to
favour a policy of imperialism, their appetite for conquest
and glory unsatiated still. This new schism, which in the
end cleft the party in twain, was augmented by the various
dissensions that had been dividing the parliamentary ranks
of the Whig oligarchy ever since the death of Pelham.
The “great families,” jealous of the ascendancy of Pitt,
were seeking to restore the old regime under which they
had ruled the land since the beginning of the century. A
powerful faction, headed by the Duke of Bedford, regarded
the war as a national disaster, perceiving that until it was
over they would never obtain the share of power to which
they believed they w8re entitled. The Grenville clique had
become utterly disunited, most of them being prepared
to support any policy that might lead to^ office. Thus,
when George the Third ascended the throne he found that
the great party, whose first principle was the limitation of
the power of the monarchy, had been utterly demoralised
by internal discord, and He lost no time in taking advantage
of the opportunity to realise his long-cherished dreams of
a supreme king. The initial step in the constitutional
reaction was taken in March 1761, when he managed to
persuade the Whig Government to accept Lord Bute as
Secretary of State. Six months later the young sovereign
gained his second victory, when Pitt, beaten in the cabinet
by the intrigues of the newly promoted favourite, gave up
the seals, leaving to Newcastle the impossible task of con-
trolling his mutinous forces alone.
The conduct of the great statesman, whose re^nation
bad been hastened by the refusal of his colleagues to declare
6o
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
war against Spain, was defended by none of his followers more
loyally or with greater ability than by the member for Ayles-
bury. On the 13th of November, during the debate on the
address the House of Commons was startled by an uncom-
mon spectacle, the gaunt figure of John Wilkes — one of the ,
rarest of speakers — ^rising amidst the crowded benches, his
obstinate jaw thrust forward, squinting menacingly. In tones
of bitter scorn he plunged into a bold criticism of the king’s
speech, which, he insisted with perfect truth, should be
regarded as the speech of the minister, “ though of what
minister," he added with a hoarse chuckle, while his audi-
tors laughed at the witticism, " I cannot tell.” Proceeding
to defend the policy of his leader, he declared that a secret
treaty existed between France and Spain, arguing that Pitt
was right in wishing to frustrate the machinations of the
Spaniards by commencing hostilities before they were ready
to attack England.^ It was a daring speech, candid and
truculent, a more notable oration than any Wilkes had
hitherto made. •
Early in the following year he found another oppor-
tunity of vindicating the conduct of his leader. A few
weeks after Pitt’s resignation the Spanish Government
had thrown off its mask, openly acknowledging the alliance’
with the French, and the inevitable declaration of war had
followed. The apologists of Pitt ’contended that his fore-
sight was justified, while his opponents protested that
France would never have entered into the Family Compact
with the Spanish if the British minister had been w#h’ng
to accept a reasonable treaty of peace. Upon" the publi-
cation of the secret negotiations the stormy controversy
broke out anew, and the usual shoal of pamphlets poured
from the press. Most noticeable of all of them, attracting
far more attention than any, was a lengthy essay, which
Wilkes published anonymously on the 9th of March, en-
titled “jObservations on the Papers relative to the Rupture
^ Memoirs of the Reign of George lll^ H. Walpole, i. 71.
,; 62 ] THE POLICY OF GEORGE III 6i
with Spain, laid before both Houses of Parliament on
Friday, Jan. 29th, 1762.” ^
It was the first political treatise that Wilkes had written,
and a most forcible apology on behalf of Pitt. Choosing as
his text the general proposition that war had been inevit-
able, he denied that the statesman whom he defended had
wished to provoke a contest, alleging that “ before the first
overtures of France for the particular peace with England,
Spain had resolved at a proper time to take an efficient
and openly Iiostilc part against us.” Having accused the
Government of suppressing many documents relating to
the negotiations, he declared that Pitt, on the contrary,
desired “ to lay open and reveal to an unerring public both
the motives and actions of every part of his Administration.
A retrospect carries no terrors but to the guilty. ...” In
a burst of true Wilkish rhetoric he pronounced a grand
eulogy upon his hero. “ I am persuaded,” he wrote, " had
the direction of British counsels been suffered to continue
in the same hands, the name of Pitt had soon been as dreaded
at Madrid as it is at Paris, or as it is dear to his grateful
countrymen.” The “ glaring duplicity ” of the Spaniards
was the subject of many scathing comments. " I think
the conduct of Spain . . . was so grossly partial to our
professed enemies as would have justified any overt acts
on the side of England from every principle of justice.
• . . The only question most evidently was whether we
should enter into it (the war) with every advantage on our
si 9 f^ or from weakness, indecision, or a delusive hope at
best, givd* our determined enemy that time to prepare,
which it was notorious she wanted.” Upon the new
members of the. Government he let off all the shafts in his
quiver, occasionally making a palpable hit. “ Two Secre-
taries of State in these dangerous times become Ministers
' Letters of Witkes to His Daughter, i. 19 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon,
63 ; A Complete Ctllection of Genuine Papers in the Case of John Wilkes
(Paris, 1767), p. 223 : The North Briton (W. Bingley, 1769), vol.i,. Part I.
P- lix.
62 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
by inspiration I We have as little experience of them as
they of business.”
It was an effective essay in the robust art of the pam-
phleteer, a successful one also since most Englishmen be-
lieved its statements to be true. Yet it is doubtful whether
the verdict of posterity has endorsed contemporary opinion.
Since the one grand object of English statecraft had been
accomplished, and British rule over India and North
America firmly established, there seems little doubt, in the
light of subsequent history, that Pitt would have been well
advised to accept the terms of peace that the French
Government were prepared to offer. Although it was
possible to defeat our allied enemies in every sea and to
extend our colonial empire still farther, it is certain that
if France, incomparably the greatest military nation in
Europe, had been thus compelled to concentrate all her
efforts upon continental conquest, the German states would
have been overwhelmed one by one and the balance of
power upset as completely as it was in later years during
the Napoleonic wars. At this crisis in our history it is
probable that Pitt was not so true a friend to his country
as George the Third and the Whig statesmen, who believed
that it was best for England to be content with her great .
triumphs and seek for peace.
An amusing incident arose out of the publication of the
" Observations on the Spanish Papers,” by which title the
pamphlet was popularly known. On the day after it appeared
Wilkes happened to meet an ambitious parson napped
John Douglas, while walking in the park, and, in a simile
spirit of mischief to that which prompted the tipsy Sheridan
to claim the name of Wilberforce, he infoijned the clergy-
man that many persons believed him to be the author of
the anonymous tract. In great perturbation the reverend
gentleman, whose main object in life was to thrust him-
self up the ecclesiastical ladder, made flantic efforts to*
trace thh rumour to the fountain head, finally writing to
THE POLICY OF GEORGE III 63
Wilkes himself to beg him to disclose the source of the
information.
“ If the report gains credit,” he pleaded piteously, ” it
will be as prejudicial to my interest, as it is absolutely
unsupported by truth." ^
The incorrigible jester was delighted by the success of
his joke and gravely informed his victim that he would
contradict the rumour, assuring him in a letter full of veiled
sarcasm ‘‘ there is not a man in this country who more
honours your superior literary abilities than I do, or more
warmly wishes, for the dignity of our Church, to see them
rewarded in an eminent and distinguished manner.” *
The metamorphosis of John Wilkes from a mere political
dilettante into one of the most ardent of partisans was now
complete. Having implicit faith in “ the principles of the
Revolution,” he regarded the despotic tendencies of the
King with watchful suspicion, while his adoration of Pitt
made him the bitterest antagonist of Lord Bute. Although
the disappointment of losing all chance of obtaining a place
of profit naturally increased his resentment against his
opponents, he was full of honest wrath against those who
had brought his party to ruin, being a sincere Whig of the
old school, and when he declared in later years that “ acci-
dent had made him a patriot,” meaning that he had not been
actuated by a sincere coiiviction, he was merely jesting, as
was his constant habit, at his own expense.®
Political events moved rapidly. On May 26, 1762, the
DuVe of Newcastle, realising at last that he had exchanged
the autocratic Pitt for another master in the person of the
King’s favouijte, resigned the premiership to which he had
clung with senile tenacity for so long, and Lord Bute became
Prime Minister in his place. The new Government was an
odd collection of individuals, selected mainly on account
' Add. MS. 30,867, f. 172.
0 * Life of Wilkes y j. Almon, i. 68-9 ; Letters to and from Mr. Wilkes
(‘709), pp. 172-3. ^
• EurtSpean Magazine (1798), p. 225'.
64 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
of their supposed subserviency to the will of the sovereign.
Lord Halifax, as genial a debauchee as Wilkes himself, and
Lord Egremont, a supercilious noble whom Wilkes detested,
were eventually chosen as Secretaries of State. George
Grenville, the most talented of the band of brothers, who
had deserted his clique because he disapproved of Pitt’s
militarism, was appointed to the Admiralty, after holding
the seals for the northern department for a short period.
It being necessary to retain a competent debater in the
Lower House, the avaricious Fox was permitted to keep
the lucrative office of Pay-master, and when the occasion
arose he was persuaded to undertake “ the management ”
of the Commons, Lord Bute having determined to win
over a sufficient number of " King’s friends ” by a system
of bribery and proscription. The appointment, however,
that caused the most adverse criticism was the choice of
Sir Francis Dashwood as Chancellor of the Exchequer, the
jovial president of the Medmenham monks having so little
capacity for figures that Wilkes was, able to convulse the
town with laughter by picturing him as a politician who had
been " puzzling all his life over tavern bills.” ^
'The Whig party having been completely routed. Lord
Bute, in collusion with his royal master, was able to look
forward with confidence to its annihilation, his plan being
to obtain the King’s supremacy pver the legislature by a
systematic purchase of votes. It was necessary, in the
first place to terminate the war, the money that had been
lavished upon the army and the fleet being now required
for the bribery and corruption of Members of Parliament.
When the peace was once concluded, the Court party,
encouraged by their recent triumphs, anticipated little
difficulty in extinguishing the Whig oligarchy for ever.
Accordingly the negotiations with France and Spain were
hurried forward, and in little more than a month after
^ Dedication prefixed to The Fall of Mortimer ^ John Wilkes;
cf. Life ^ Wilkes^ J. Almon, i. 75.
,7&] THE POLICY OF GEORGE III 65
Lord Bute had finally re-constructed his ministry the
preliminaries were signed at Fontainebleau. When the
details were at last divulged, the country was ablaze with
indignation. Not content with the suzerainty of India and
America, the people of England were anxious to keep
every inch of conquered territory in other parts of the
world, and the restoration of so many recent acquisitions
in the West Indies gave rise to angry protests that Bute
and Bedford had been bribed by the enemy. In a witty
aphorism Wilkes expressed the opinion of his fellow-country-
men with his usual neatness.
“ It is certainly the peace of God,” he sneered, " for it
passeth all understanding.” ^
Wlien Dashwood accepted the office of Chancellor of
the Exchequer, he hastened to convey the surprising intelli-
gence to Wilkes, adding in his bluff hearty manner that the
news would “ make him wonder and that very justly.” *
At the same time he wrote to the officers of the Bucking-
hamshire militia informing them that he was obliged to
resign his commission as Colonel, suggesting that the lieu-
tenant-colonel “ a man of spirit, good sense and civil de-
portment, who has shown resolution and industry,” should
he his successor.® This eulogium referred to Wilkes, who,
originally a captain, had become second in command, and
Lord Temple, the Lord-Lifeutenant of the county, naturally
being of the same opinion as Sir Francis Dashwood, the
member for Aylesbury received the vacant conunission.
I The fegiment was stationed in camp near Winchester,
guarding tBe French prisoners, and all through the summer
Wilkes devoted himself to his military duties with his
accustomed zeal. »
One who made his acquaintance at this period has left an
unflattering portrait of the militia colonel. Edward Gibbon,
' Life and Letters of Sir Gilbert Elliot^ iii. 246.
* “ Add. MS. 30,867, f. 176.
Life of WilkeSy J. Almon, i. 39 ; Add. MS. 30,867, f. 178 ; O^iildhaU
214, f. I, vol. 3 ; Eg. MS. 2136, pp. 29, 49.
66 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES ti7&
the future historian, then a plump little captain in the
South battalion of the Hampshire militia, who dined with
him in the month of September, has recorded that the
company spent a “very debauched day” drinking “a
good deal both after diimer and supper.” Indeed, when
Wilkes had retired to rest, some festive souls broke into
his room and persuaded him to consiune another bottle of
claret. Gibbon was charmed by the wit and high spirits
of the Buckinghamshire colonel, but he formed a poor
opinion of his moral character.
" A thorough profligate in principle as in practice,” he
considered him, “ his life stained with every vice and his
conversation full of blasphemy and indecency. These
morals he glories in — for shame is a weakness he has long
since surmounted.” '
Apparently, on this occasion, Wilkes was at some
pains to shock the company by pretending that he had
attacked Bute and attached himself to Pitt and Temple
only “ to make his fortune ” — a m6re paraphrase of the
asseveration that “ accident had made him a patriot.”
The scandalised Gibbon treasured up the memory of
this apparent lack of principle, forgetting that the Great
Commoner and his brother-in-law were old friends of
the member for Aylesbury, while the King’s favourite
was the most dangerous enehiy that his party had
encountered.
While he was at Winchester camp, Wilkes conceived the
idea of printing the ribald parody that his poor wrongf-fiead
friend Potter — now in the grave — had written in colla-
boration with him many years before. Doubtless he wished
to present a memento of their dead comrade to a few of
his fellow-rakes, so that each might have in his library a
copy of the verses that had been so often recited at their
symposiums while the bottle coursed ro^d the table and
* of E. Gibbon (1814], i. 142 n. ; Add. MS. 32,568, f..25 j TaM*
Talk of S. Rogers (Dyce), p. 351.
,762] THE POLICY OF GEORGE III 67
the laughter rang high. Accordingly he commissioned
George Kearsley, the printer in Ludgate Street, to set up
the poem in type, and let him have proofs struck off in
red ink as well as black for his final revision. Tringham,
the well-known book-plate engraver, was also instructed to
work a suitable title-page on copper with a phallic design,
—a shameful title-page indeed, composed by Wilkes him-
self, which contained an atrocious libel on an Archbishop.*
Pressure of business seems to have prevented Wilkes from
proceeding far with the printing of the poem, and when he
resumed the task a few months later he soon had cause to
regret that he had not allowed the " Essay on Woman ”
to lie safely in his desk.
But his principal occupation during the whole time that
he was in charge of his battalion had been a new and furious
campaign against the Prime Minister. The inspiration
came to him from the enemy. On becoming First Lord of
the Treasury, the Earl of Bute had established a weekly
paper for the defence of his Government in opposition
to a formidable old Whig periodical called The Monitor.
Wilkes’s choleric friend Tobias Smollett, a loyal Scot
though an inefficient journalist, was chosen editor of the
new ministerial organ, which was christened The Briton.
The opportunity of meeting the apologists of the Govern-
ment in weekly controverey was irresistible, and Wilkes
lost no time in setting up a rival sheet, which, in derision,
he dubbed The North Briton. Henceforth, whether in
camp,* at Aylesbury, or in London, he managed to find
leisure for the publication of his paper each Saturday morn-
mg, writing mclst of the numbers himself, but occasionally
obtaining the help Of the burly, blustering Charles Churchill,
who had taken the place of Thomas Potter as his fidus
Achates. Naturally, The North Briton was filled with
violent abuse of t^e ministry and its friends, but it was
' The Grenville Papers, 1. 489-90; Add. MSS. 22,132, pp. 34, 94^ 217 ;
3“.885, f. 156 ; Guildhall MS. 214, f. i, vol. 3, passim.
68 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1762
well written, witty, and epigrammatic, and from the first
it proved a great success.'
Wilkes was now thirty-seven years old, and he had long
been a man of mark. If he had gained no other reputation,
his fame as a wit would have been sufficient to make him
a celebrity. In the college hall, in the lobbies of St.
Stephen’s, in the club and in the coffee-house, his latest
bon mot passed from lip to lip. Folks looked to him, as
to Foote and Lord Chesterfield, to provide the town with
its supply of humour. Some of these ancient jests have
descended to posterity, and although the witticism of one
age becomes a platitude in the next, a little of Wilkes’s
badinage can still raise a laugh, showing that the salt has
not lost its savour.
Everyone admired the neatness of the repartee, when
Wilkes, on being asked to take a pinch of snuff, shook his
head decisively, and, holding his finger and thumb wide
apart, replied : ‘‘ Thank you, I have no small vices,” 2 and
many less polished quips appear in ni'odern comedy.
The stalwart Protestants of his time were delighted
with a famous retort of his to a Catholic clergyman, who
in the course of a theological dispute put to him the perti-
nent question : ” Where was your religion before Luther ?”
” Did you wash your face this morning ? ” demanded
Wilkes, and when his antagonist gave a smiling assent, he
inquired calmly : ” Where was your face before you washed
it ? - 3
Soon after he had commenced his crusade against the
arbitrary Government of George the Third, a lady begged
him to take a hand in a game of cards.
' English Newspapers, H. R. Fox Bourne, i. 153-161 ; Life of
J. Almon, i. 91-3; “ J.T.Y.’* in Notes and Queries, 7th series, ix. 1 ^ 4 J
Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Walpole, i, 140 ; Public Adoeri^^f^^
June 2 and June 5, 1762 ; Wilkes, Sheridan, Fox, W. F, Rae, pp.
Wilkes and Cobbett, J. S. Watson, p. ii,
* Records of My Life, J. Taylor, i. 114; European Magazine (i 79 o)>
p. 226.
® The Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, ii, ii ; Diary of Crabb Robinson, i* 95 '
.76.] THE POLICY OF GEORGE III 69
" Dear Madam,” he answered, " do not ask me, for I
am so ignorant that I cannot tell the difference between a
king and a knave,” and no true Whig was ever tired of
quoting the apposite reply.'
One day while walking on the Stcyne at Brighton he
met a young lady of his acquaintance.
” You see, Mr. Wilkes,” she explained, “ I am come out
for a little sun and air.”
" I think. Madam,” he replied, “ you had better get a
little husband first,” *
Most popular, perhaps, of all his jibes was his retort to
Lord Sandwich. The dissipated earl had laughingly pro-
phesied that Wilkes would die of a venereal disease or on
the gallows.
“ That depends, my lord,” came the swift reply, “ whether
1 embrace your mistress or your principles.” ®
Yet, in spite of his celebrity as a wit, the member for
Aylesbury did not succeed in winning the position in society
to which he aspired. ‘Although he was welcome enough at
a man’s party, the great hostesses would not deign to recog-
nise him. With the exception of Lady Temple, who was
obliged to tolerate his company when her husband had
need of him, no grande danus appears to have opened her
doors to him. This ostracism was not wholly due to the
exclusiveness of the English nobility, which even in his
day was often relaxed in favour of some whose origin was
no more distinguished than his. In spite of the fact that
he had not been to any of the great public schools, it
was possiblS that John Wilkes might have won the same
social success as Anthony Storey or James Hare by becoming
the satellite of a man of rank, unless there had been some
grave reason to prevent his advancement. Possibly his
progress was hindered by Iris financial embarrassments, but
^ Records of My Life^ J, Taylor, i. 113.
^ The Sexagenarian] W, Beloe^ ii. 12* (This bon mot is also attributed
I Joseph Jekyll.) '•
^ Statesmen of George II I , Lord Brougham, 3rd series, p. 1S9.
70 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES ti7fe
beyond all doubt it was his reputation as a profligate that
caused society to look askance at him. Although no more
immoral than most of his contemporaries, he gave the
impression of being unable to put a curb upon his passions,
Whether true or false, the story told by Horace Walpole
that Wilkes "had debauched a maiden of family by an
informal promise of marriage,” shows how popular opinion
regarded the man’s character.^ No one would have
credited the most merciless rake of the period, such as Lord
Pembroke or Sir Francis Delaval, with such an outrage
upon the principle of noblesse oblige, save under exceptional
circumstances and swayed by genuine infatuation, but the
author of The North Briton was believed to sin through
mere wantonness, being no respecter of persons ; and
Wilkes, who loved to shock the world by painting himself
in the blackest colours, made no attempt to assume the
cloak of a hypocrite, even to gratify his social ambitions.
Whatever was worst in his character was always known of
him.
» Memoirs of the Eeisn of George III, H. Walpole, i. 142 ; cf. Dr. John-
son's opinion of Wilkes's morals. Birkbeck Hill's Boswell^ v. 339.
CHAPTER VI
“THE NORTH BRITON”
1762-1763
W ITH his wonted sagacity, Wilkes had been the
first to perceive that the best means of dama-
ging the Government that had repudiated his
friends was by waging a fierce journalistic war-
fare in guerilla fashion against the unpopular Prime Minister.
Even before Lord Bute had become First Lordof theXreasury,
Wilkes held him up to ridicule as a court minion in an
article in the Monitor, and a few weeks later in the same
periodical he had insinuated that the relationship between
the King’s mother afld the unpopular statesman resembled
that of Madame de Pompadour and her cher ami, the Abb6
de Bernis.* It was to deride the nationality of the Premier
that he selected the title otThe North Briton for his new paper,
the first sheet of which was published on the 5th of June,
1762, a week after the minister had accepted the seals of
office. The bookseller tvhom Wilkes desired to employ,
one William Johnston of Ludgate Street, refused to take the
risk of publishing the periodical, but eventually George
Kejtrsley of Ludgate Hill, the nephew and successor of one
Jacob Rotinson, accepted the responsibility on the imder-
standing that he was to be permitted to disclose the identity
of the real author in case of prosecution.* A printer named
' The Monitor, May 22 and June 12, 1762. The North Briton {1763),
31, ; Die. Nat. Biog., in the admirable article on John Wilkes by
J. M. Rigg ; cf. Hist, of Late Minority (J. Almon), 4th ed., p. 58 ; Life of
'^Wilkes, J. Almon, i.*xi. ; English Newspapers, H. R. Fox Bourne, i. 153.
* Guildhall MS. 214-4; “ Proof of authorship of The North Briton,
45 ” ; cf. Add, MS, 35,400, f. 160.
71
72 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.7^,.
Dryden Leach, of Crane Court, Fleet Street, was secured
under the same conditions. Tire first number opened with
a fine sentence in the true Wilkish manner : “ The liberty
of the press is the birthright of a Briton, and is justly esteemed
the firmest bulwark of the liberties of this country,” which
formed the text of a terse, vigorous article, full of veiled
sarcasm aimed at the unpopular minister and his Scottish
nationality.
A Caledonian ancestry was at that time a most serious
embarrassment to any public man who desired to make his
mark in English politics. The immemorial hostility to the
people of the North, which was almost a natural trait
throughout England, had in recent years been fanned into
a fiercer flame by the Highland invasion of ’45, while
the success of Scottish immigrants in every walk of life
increased the resentment. Almost every Englishman re-
garded a Scotsman with bitter hatred, ridiculing his manner
of speech, the poverty of his country, its baiTenness, the
bleakness of its climate, attributing to him dirty habits
and loathsome diseases, making him the butt of a hundred
ill-natured sarcasms.^ This attitude of mind, which is re-
vealed so constantly in the table-talk of Dr. Johnson,
nowhere found more violent expression than in the pages
of The 'North Briton, where Wilkes put forth all his wit and
eloquence in reviling the people of Scotland. The second,
third, and fourth numbers of the paper were filled with
cynical insults against the whole race.
It was inevitable that this conduct should put an .end
to many old friendships, for since the Leyden days, when
Alexander Carlyle and John Gregory were his fellow-students,
some of Wilkes’s bosom companions had been natives of the
sister kingdom. Among the first to break with him was
the irascible Smollett, the rival editor, stung beyond endur-
ance by the references in The North Briton to “ the numerous
* His\. of England, W. E. H. Lccky, iii. 50-4 ; Wilkes, Sheridan, and
Fox, \V. F. Rae, p. 21.
“THE NORTH BRITON”
T 1
73
Scotticisms ” in his literary style and the ceaseless affronts
to his national pride.' Before long also, his dear friend
Dr. Armstrong, who had watched over the health of little
Polly Wilkes with almost parental fondness for many years,
sent him a curt letter saying : “ I cannot with honour or
decency associate with one who has distinguished himself
by abusing my country ; ” though some believed that the
resentment of the physician was caused principally by the
unauthorised publication of one of his poems which he had
entrusted to the editor of The North Britonioi safe custody.*
These defections, however, did not cause Wilkes to modify
his crusade in the slightest degree, and as the arch-enemy
of Scotland he soon began to be regarded by his fellow-
countrymen as almost a national hero.
It was in The North Briton, No. 5, published on
July 3, that Wilkes reached the height of his audacity,
elaborating his Bernis-Pompadour innuendoes with still
greater emphasis. For an historical analogy he selected
the early days of the reign of Edward the Third, when he
reminded his readers there had been " a minority under the
direction of a Mother, actuated by strong passions and
influenced by an insolent minister.”® Without the least
disguise he compared Lord Bute to Mortimer, while the
cliaractcr of Queen Isabella was contrasted with that of
the Dowager Princess of Wales, who, like her predecessor of
old, was believed by the mob to have a liaison with the royal
favourite. Having suggested that the Scottish earl as well
as Mortimer had arranged a peace to the disadvantage of
England rftid for the benefit of his fellow-countrymen, he
declared, with an obvious inference, that " Mortimer was
* Life of WilkeSy Almon, i. 50-1.
“ Add. MS. 30,867,1. 21O. SQQDic.Nat, Biog., under “John Armstrong’*;
f ijc of Uumcy J. H. Burton, p. 148 ; Lit. Anecdotes of Eighteenth Century y
J Nichols, ii. 309.
I'he North Britony printed for J, Williams (1763), i. 38. (This was
•the edition in 3 vols.* printed at Wilkes's- private press in Great George
Street). “ J.T.Y.” in Notes and Queries^ 7th series, viii. loi ;.c/. Add,
22,132, ff. 146, 283 ; 30,868, f. 40,
74 life of JOHN WILKES [. 76 .
indebted for the enormity of his power to a criminal corres-
pondence with the Queen Mother.” ' It was an amazing
philippic, written with a restraint that made the invective
all the more forcible, undoubtedly the most audacious
leaflet that had been hurled against the Government, and the
young King, who loved and honoured his mother, must have
been more than human if he had ever forgotten the insult.
At this period Wilkes and Churchill had become the
closest of friends, an unlucky circumstance for the former,
since although he was unamenable to influence and could
learn nothing in vice from any man alive, the spirit of
emulation made him prone to compete with his ally in
extravagance and profligacy.^ An uncouth reprobate,
drunkard as well as debauchee, notwithstanding that he
was a clergyman, the poet had blazed into fame during the
previous year with the publication of “ The Rosciad,” a
satire upon the stage. Though raised by popular accla-
mation to the throne that had been vacant since Pope’s
death, he had revealed little of the imagination and had
displayed none of the art of the man of Twickenham, and
conscious that he would suffer in comparison with this first
model, he acclaimed Dryden as his master, aping the rough
vigour of the great John with as much success as lack of
genius had permitted him. Later, in the Hudibrastic vein,
he produced some verses that one who was not the least
fastidious of his contemporaries described as " glorious,” but
he was a dull fellow at the best, without a spark of humour,
having little merit save a species of rugged vehemence.*
No more suitable henchman, however, could* have been
found for Wilkes’s purpose. While the member for Ayles-
bury was toiling to make his battalion .as efficient as a
regiment of the line, which he congratulated himself upon
accomplishing before they were disbanded, Churchill under-
* TAe NoyiA (1763), i. 41. ' '
• * Add. MS. 30,878, f. I.
^ Letters of H, Walpole (Toynbee), v. 442.
“THE NORTH BRITON
1762]
75
took the duty of correcting the proof sheets of The North
Briton, and was always ready to write one of the papers
himself when his chief could not find leisure for the task,
the periodical gaining in scurrility what it lost in wit when
these occasions arose.* Wilkes, nevertheless, was satisfied
with his collaborator. “ I admired exceedingly what I read
last Saturday,” he assured his friend on the 27th of July.
“ Your last North Briton I liked excessively,” he informed
him a few weeks later. “A thousand thanks for your
verse and prose of Saturday,” he wrote to his colleague on
October 25, " you have managed The North Briton incom-
parably.” ^
Whether the pen was wielded by Wilkes or by his
satellite, the public read the paper with the greatest eager-
ness. The daily press contained no leading article, and,
except when an occasional letter from some industrious
correspondent appeared in its pages, every reader was left
to form his own estimate of political events. It may be
imagined with what delight the typical English house-
holder welcomed the new addition to his breakfast-table
on a Saturday morning. Even the sternest Tory laughed
with glee at the sparkling witticisms against the hated
Scotsmen. Hundreds of electors who loved and honoured
their young king nodded vrith stern approval over the clever
diatribes at the expense of Lord Bute, and repeated to one
another the rumour of his liaison with the Princess of
Wales. The heart of every stalwart Whig glowed with
fresh courage, and it was declared — and with much truth —
that a gr^at political writer had appeared, the most ex-
cellent pamphleteer since the days of Swift.
Yet, although this was the opinion of the rank and file,
the leaders of the party were by no means unanimous in
their approbation. Pitt indeed was frankly hostile from the
first, as Wilkes himself acknowledged later, for the great
. ^ Guildhall MS. 214, 4 ; The Grenville Papers^ i. 473. -
* Add. MSS. 30,878, ff. 5, 13, 14.
76 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [>763
minister had always striven for the principle of national
unity, and was sorely grieved that one of his own henchmen
should be the foremost in reviling the brave Scottish nation,*
At the outset Lord Temple also disapproved of the policy of
TJie North Briton, and although he modified his opinion for
a little while, his combative instinct being unable to resist
the fascination of a journalistic battle when the odds were
all on the side of his own party, he confessed to his friends
that he hated " this paper warfare,” and was much incensed
that he should be regarded as its instigator. * The Duke of
Devonshire, however, whom the King’s mother had dubbed
in derision ” The Prince of the Whigs,” declared that Wilkes
was the life and soul of the Opposition, and many of his
principal followers shared his views.®
Each week throughout the summer Wilkes and Churchill
continued to launch their thunderbolts against the Govern-
ment, eulogising Pitt, abusing “ the favourite,” making
cynical reflections upon the King himself.* No one was
spared whom it served their purpose to lampoon, with the
exception of Sir Francis Dashwood “ the tavern-bill ”
Chancellor, who owed this clemency to the free-masonry of
the Medmenham monks.® Even such an unobtrusive dilet-
tante as Horace Walpole received a mild castigation because
he was supposed to have flattered the Scotch and pane-
gyrised Henry Fox, but he conciliated his critic by having
” taken it so well,” which he might not have done had the
blow been a less light one.® Dr. Johnson, now a Govern-
ment pensioner, was one of the earliest victims of The
North Briton’s sarcasms, many of the caustic definitions in
* Wilkes’s Marginalia, in Hist, of Late Minority, 3rd In»p. (Brit.
Mus.), p. 399- •
» Wilkes’s Marginalia, ibid., pp. 399, 401 ; The Grenville Papers, i. 4561
ii. 4; The Chatham Corresfondenee, ii. 193.
* Wilkes’s Marginalia, ibid., p. 401 .
‘ The North Briton (1763), i. pp. 69-70.
‘ Wilkes’s Marginalia, tbid., p. 409. •
* Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), i. xlvi., v. 389 ; The North Brito*
(1763), i. 17. 54. «■ 136.
,7foi THE NORTH BRITON” 77
his own Dictionary being quoted against him.^ So seriously
did Bute regard the onslaughts of his enemy, that he estab-
lished a second paper, named The Auditor, under the editor-
ship of Arthur Murphy, an Irish playwright, as an auxiliary
to Smollett’s journal. Before many weeks had passed,
Wilkes had the satisfaction of knowing that he had become
one of the greatest political forces in the land, and he
strutted about the Winchester camp in his scarlet coat and
cocked hat with the proud consciousness that there were
few of his foes who did not fear him.
“ Why do not the Print Shops take me ? ” he chuckled,
“I am an incomparable subject for a print,”* and his
fame certainly justified this last great tribute to notoriety.
During the next month he was engaged in a quarrel with
another old friend. It came to his knowledge that the
great genius of William Hogarth, who had been a fellow-
member of the Beef Steak Club for many years, was about
to be employed in the service of the Government, a political
caricature having been projected, called “ The Times,” in
which the principal leaders of the Opposition were to be held
up to ridicule. Having remonstrated with the artist, he
learnt that, although it was intended to satirise Pitt and
Temple, neither Churchill nor himself would be assailed,
whereupon he replied that he “ should never believe it worth
while to take notice of afiy reflections on himself, but if his
friends were attacked, he should then think he was wounded
in the most sensible part, and would, as well as he was able,
avenge their cause,” adding significantly “ that if he thought
The Nortlt Briton would insert what he sent he would make
an appeal to- the public on the very Saturday following the
publication of the print.” * Not only was Hogarth under
‘ The North Briton, I. 99, 101-5 ; ii. 175. Cf. Boswell’s Johnson,
G. B. Hill, ill. 183.
* Guildhall MS. 214, r, vol. 3. Letter from Aylesbury, Aug. 29.
’ Letters to and' from W. Wilhes (1769), pp. 188-9; The Political
288; Hogarth's Works, J. Ireland and J. Nichols, ii. 182;
Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 24.
78 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES im
considerable obligations to Bute, but his purse, as was often
the case, at that moment needed replenishing, while no
doubt he considered himself in honour bound to keep his
promise to his employers ; so, notwithstanding the threats
of the autocrat, “ The Times ” made its appearance in due
course.^ The dreaded caricature, however, proved to be a
puerile production, most harmless and ineffective as a poli-
tical cartoon.
It depicted a street of burning houses, emblematic of
the world in flames, which the Premier, with the help of a
fire-engine manned by soldiers and sailors, was endeavouring
to subdue, while Pitt and Temple strove to excite the con-
flagration.* Yet, as a warning to those who might seek to
defy him, in order to show that his commands could not
be disobeyed with impunity, Wilkes proceeded to make a
savage attack upon his old friend, devoting a whole number
of The North Briton to his castigation. No diatribe was
ever more merciless. The painter’s favourite picture, a
portrait of his wife, was ridiculed with cruel mockery. He
was accused of being the most envious and malevolent of
mankind, swayed only by vanity and love of gain, delighting
in the darkest phases of human nature, wholly despicable
and bad at heart.* Nothing was omitted that malignity
could devise to cause him pain. Hogarth, an old man in
weak health, was sorely wounded,* but with the tenacity of
a proud sensitive spirit he treasured the memory of the
affront, ever on the alert to discover an appropriate revenge.
At the same time Wilkes was engaged in a much more
troublesome quarrel. In The North Briton of "August 21
he had offended Earl Talbot, Lord Steward of the
Household, by a witty satire upon his horsemanship.* A
few days later his victim sent him a letter to demand that
' Anecdotes of Hogarth^ by himself, p. 58,
* William Hogarth, A. Dobson, p. 132 ; Cat, of Satirical Prints (Brit*
Mus.), iv. 188-93. *
* The North Briton (1763), i. 154-65.
* The North Briton (1763), i. io8-q.
1762]
“THE NORTH BRITON’
79
he should either acknowledge or disclaim the article, to which
Wilkes replied that he must first insist on knowing his lord-
ship's right to catechise him about an anonymous paper.'
A long and acrimonious correspondence followed, which
ended in Lord Talbot sending Colonel Norborne Berkeley
with a challenge to his lampooner to fight a duel on Bagshot
Heath. The letter in which Wilkes hastened to accept the
invitation revealed a flash of his irrepressible humour, for
he not only invited his adversary’s second to sup with him,
but even suggested that they should make a partie cante?
On the 5th of October, the appointed day, incapable still of
regarding the matter seriously, he swaggered into the Red
Lion Inn, a famous hostelry kept by the famous Tom Tilbury,
which had been chosen as their rendezvous, accompanied by
Harris, his adjutant, fresh from an orgie at Medmenham
Abbey, and filled with the spirit of jocular bravado. An
interview with Lord Talbot soon convinced him that there
was no chance of an amicable supper and the postponement
of this combat till the« morning, or in that event sine die, as
he seems to have expected.
Furious with passion, the earl addressed him in terms
that made a duel inevitable. Maintaining his aplomb,
Wilkes suggested that the doors should be locked and the
affair settled at once in that same room. For a moment
Lord Talbot’s anger blazed forth afresh, and he declared
that this would be “ mere butchery.” Then, mollified by
the good humour of his enemy, he reproached Wilkes for
attacking him without provocation, asking “ in a soothing
tone of voiefe,” if he were not sorry to make him unhappy.
Tile wit begged permission to ring for pens and papers,
chatting amiably with the angry peer meanwhile, reminding
him of the occasion on which he had been his guest at
Wycombe camp ; but when the writing materials had been
brought a touch of seriousness came over him, and he
" »
^ 9/ Wilkes^ J. Almon, iii. 41-2.
A Complete Collection of Genuine Papers (Paris, 1767), pp. 12-13,
8o LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i 7 fe
scribbled a letter to his patron with the pathetic request
that if he were killed, Lady Temple should superintend the
education of a daughter whom he loved beyond all the
world.* A moment later he had become a gay swashbuckler
again, and he desired that they should proceed at once to
the field of battle. More than half appeased by the amia-
bility of his antagonist. Lord Talbot retorted that he seemed
in a great hurry to be killed, whereupon Wilkes reminded
him that he was running a double risk, since he fought with
a halter round his neck, while the earl was fighting with
" the King’s pardon in his pocket.” The Lord Steward
having made the obvious repartee that Wilkes was sure to
come to the gallows, the irrepressible wit inquired if he was
to be “ killed first and hanged afterwards.” *
Neither of the combatants was eager for the fight, their
verbal warfare having extinguished most of the nobleman’s
indignation, but both had gone too far to recede with honour,
and after some discussion it was agreed to adjourn to a
garden near the inn. It was now ^ven o’clock at night,
but there was a bright moon. Wilkes’s high spirits were
undiminished to the last, for when his opponent demanded
how many shots they should fire, he answered with a laugh,
" As many as you please. I have brought a bag of bullets
and a flask of gunpowder.” ®
They were placed back to back at a distance of ten yards,
and the Adjutant, having given the signal, both wheeled
round and discharged their pistols simultaneously. Wilkes,
one may be sure, took care to miss, while it was also certain
that Lord Talbot could not find it in his heart to take a
steady aim at such an incorrigible jester,- and the two
bullets whistled harmlessly into the darkness. Scarcely
had the reports died away when the journalist walked up
to his antagonist and confessed that he was the author of
* The Grenville Papers, i. 477, 479.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 35 ; c/. Add. MSS. 351400, ff.
* Add. MS. 32,567, f. 170.
THE NORTH BRITON*’
8i
1762]
the offensive article. The earl replied that Wilkes was a
gentleman and a man of honour, after which they all re-
turned to the Red Lion, where they made a most good-
humoured parlie cante after all, over a bottle of claret.*
Needless to add the public were much amused by the in-
cident, and Wilkes had the satisfaction of seeing many cari-
catures of the duel in the windows of the print shops.
Apparently, too, he became more than ever “ a lion among
the ladies,” on his return to camp.
“ A sweet girl whom I have sighed for unsuccessfully
these four months,” he confessed to both Churchill and Lord
Temple when he wrote to them from Winchester, “ now
whispers me that she will trust her honour at the first
Shepherd’s minute to a man who takes so much care of his
own. I must look into my old friend Johnson for what
is synonymous to the word honour, to guess at the fair one’s
meaning.” ®
A few days previously, Arthur Murphy, the inconse-
quent Irishman who 'edited The Auditor, printed a state-
ment in his paper to the effect that Wilkes had insulted a
son of Lord Bute, a boy at Winchester school, by abusing
his father in his presence, threatening also that he would
bring liim to the block. Though the story was too absurd
for belief, since his worst enemies admitted that “ Jack was
a scholar and a gentleman,” ® Wilkes instructed Churchill
to compose an elaborate denial in No. 21 of The North
Briton ; while he requested Dr. Burton, the head-master of
the college, to make a public investigation of the charge
in his behdflf. The pedagogue, however, probably with
! good reason, did not consider that he was justified in taking
notice of the calumny, notwithstanding that Wilkes had
^ Wilkes’s account of the duel in a letter to Lord Temple, published in
St. Jameses Chronicle^ May 14-16, 1767, and Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon,
I 111. 20-30, is corroborated in the main by two letters from Dr. Birch,
A'H. MSS. 35,400, ff. 5, II, 12.
‘ Add. MS. 30,878, f. 10 ; cf. The Grenville Papers^ i. 486,
The phrase is Dr. Johnson’s ; see Birkbeck Hill’s Boswelly iii. 183.
F
82 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
inflicted a severe punishment upon some of his militiamen,
who had insulted a Winchester boy a short time previously.*
Still no one credited the story, and Wilkes continued to be,
as he boasted to his friends, " more caressed than I can tell.”
A re-shuffling of ministerial offices now took place. It
was found necessary to purchase a majority in the Commons
favourable to peace, and Henry Fox, the paymaster, was
selected as the one strong man able to enforce the King’s
intentions, being admitted to the Cabinet and ousting
George Grenville as “ manager ” of the Lower House. A
system of wholesale bribery and intimidation, never sur-
passed in the history of Parliament, was quickly established.
As usual in such cases, a host of superfluous bureaucrats
was created, innumerable turncoats being rewarded for their
apostasy by the gift of rich sinecures. " A shop was
publicly opened at the Pay Office,” Horace Walpole de-
clares, with metaphorical accuracy at all events, " whither
the members flocked and received the wages of their venality
in bank bills.” Loans were raised in order to reward the
supporters of the Government with a share of the profits.
It was made plain to all that while the “ King’s friends”
would be lavishly rewarded his enemies would be ruthlessly
proscribed. As a public warning the sovereign struck the
name of ” the Prince of the Whigs ” from the list of Privy
Councillors with his own hand» The whole of the Civil
Service was microscopically pruned and weeded, the humUest
clerk or exciseman being discharged without explanation if
he was suspected of being a supporter of any member of
the opposition. Every vote, both in Parliament and the
constituencies, was regarded as the property, of the Crown.
At last George the Third had worked his yrill and the House
of Commons lay crushed beneath his feet.*
1 The North Briton (1763), i. 196; Acid. MSS. 35,400, ff. Il-m
30,878, f. II ; 30,875, f. 72 ; The Grenville Papers^ i. 486.
* Hist^ of the Reign of George JII^ H. Walpole,* i. 157 ; Hist, of Efiir
landf W. E. Lecky, iii. 56-8; Early Hist, of Charles James pox, G. G*
Trevelyan, pp. 31-3.
.763] THE NORTH BRITON” 83
During the following month the Militia was disbanded,
and after he had given his battalion “ a farewell drink ” at
Reading, the carouse lasting for three days, Wilkes was at
liberty to devote all his time to the crusade against the
(tovemment. Although the Rev. John Entick had been
arrested under a warrant from the Secretary of State in
consequence of some articles that had appeared in The
Monitor at various times, together with Arthur Beardmore,
the attorney, who assisted Lord Temple in his political
intrigues. The North Briton continued its campaign with
unabated vigour all through the winter without interference
from the authorities.
On the 15th of March in the following year Wilkes
published a second political essay, an ironical “ Dedication ”
to the Earl of Bute of Ben Jonson’s historical play, The
Fall of Mortimer. Its significance was revealed in the
first paragraph. “ I purposely dedicate this play to your
lordship, because history does not furnish a more striking
contrast than there Is between the two ministers in the
reigns of Edward the Third and George the Third.”
Edward “was held in the most absolute slavery by his
mother and his minister. The first nobles of England were
excluded from the king’s councils, and the minion disposed
of all places of profit and trust.” ‘ Avoiding with wily
tact any direct allusion to*the notorious friendship between
the Premier and the Dowager Princess, the scandalous
inference nevertheless was apparent to the lowest intelli-
gence all the same. It is the most excellent of all Wilkes’s
political wrftings. In a spirit of good-humoured banter and
with a lightness of touch that rendered his satire the more
keen, he sketched a witty travesty of the recent policy of
his enemy. The proscription of the Whigs, the ignominious
Peace, the Prime Minister’s improper influence over the
young king, aU wejre made the subject of the gayest mockery,
while the airy references to Bute’s bad spdling, his patronage
• Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 71.
84 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1762-63
of unworthy authors, and his fondness for amateur theat-
ricals conveyed the impression that he was one of the
vainest and weakest of mankind. Written in admirable
English, each sentence well balanced and each word
selected with care, it reveals an acute appreciation of the
value of language, in style and wit worthy of comparison
with the best specimens of Junius. Wilkes himself was
well satisfied with the composition, upon which he had
lavished infinite pains.
“ It is usual to give dedicators something,” he remarked,
with charming audacity, to Jeremiah Dyson, one of the
most subservient of Government henchmen. “ I wish you
would put his lordship in mind of it.” ^
The historical opinion of modem days has been unani-
mous almost in its condemnation of George the Third
on account of his departure from “ the principles of the
Revolution,” looking backwards, as it were, through an
inverted telescope as if the scene was of no importance in
detail, regarding the progress of constitutional evolution as
though it had followed inevitably a natmal law. Such an
attitude involves the proposition that the growth of the
nation from precedent to precedent has been directed better
and more wisely by a legislative assembly elected more or
less under popular suffrage than it could have been by any
other form of Government, a proposition that will find an
emphatic contradiction in the history of Japan and the
development of modem Germany. Both of George the
Third’s predecessors on the throne had been foreigners,
with whom he had nothing in common, whose personality
and policy he had been taught by family tradition to despise.
It was his proudest boast that he had been “ bom a Briton,’
and it was his ambition to reign as an English king, not a
mere doge like his grandfather and great-grandfather befot*
him. Obviously, as his advisers were well aware, the Bill
of Rights musf be violated before these ambitions couW ^ '■
* Utters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), v, 294.
,;6i-63] 'THE NORTH BRITON” 85
gratified, but it had been violated already by another
power. " The third great charter of English liberty ” only
protected the liberties of the people as far as ” the great
families ” would permit. One of its most important clauses
had declared that “ the election of members of Parlyament
ought to be free,” but almost every constituency was the
private property of a peer, or, owing to the small number
of the electors, might be captured by the candidate who
offered the largest bribes. The House of Commons that
George the Third wished to subjugate was not the repre-
sentative of the people of England. It was merely, as the
younger Pitt declared twenty years later, "the represen-
tative of nominal boroughs, of ruined and exterminated
towns, of noble families, of wealthy individuals, of foreign
potentates.”
George the Third’s struggle for supremacy was fought
against the great Whig families : it was not a quarrel with
the people of England. Although the nation was bitterly
incensed because Pitt,’ who was its idol, had been discarded,
and Bute, who was its hete noire, had been preferred, if
the positions had been reversed it is not improbable that
popular approval would have been on the side of the king
in his attempt to limit the power of the aristocracy. Judged
from the standpoint of the statute book, the policy of
George the Third was uficonstitutional, and so, as in all
revolutions, its best apology would have been its complete
success, while if it had brought forth good fruit it would
liave been amply justified in the eyes of posterity. In the
end, however, the king’s departure from " the principles
of the Revolution ” proved a failure, mainly because he
was unable to enUst the services of Pitt and chose to make
'in enemy of John Wilkes. Accordingly, we caimot tell to
what extent the nation might have profited under the rule
of a benevolent autocrat, assisted by the wisest ministers,
nnchecked by tlie embarrassments of party obligations,
untrammelled by the vicissitudes of party strife.
86
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i76»-63
The speculation is an attractive one. Only those who
are content with the result of our constitutional evolution,
who believe that each national problem as it has arisen
has been solved in the best way, who deny that many a
social evil has been created by the folly and selfishness of
class and of party, will refuse to admit the possibility that
England, like other modem powers, might have fared as
well during the storm and stress of the eighteenth century
beneath the sway of " a Patriot King.” At a time when the
factory system was making the greatest changes in the life
of the people, when a vast increase in population was
building up a hundred modem towns, it was of the utmost
importance that the development of the nation should have
been guided by those who had no covetous taskmasters to
serve, and who were raised above the desire of promoting
their own material interests.
As events have proved, George the Third and his de-
scendants were not the men for the great work. Let us
condemn him, however, for his failure, and not for the
attempt. Had he been sagacious enough to seek the co-
operation of the greatest intellects of his day, if he had
engaged such as Pitt, Burke, and the younger Fox as fellow-
labourers in the great cause, and if Lady Sarah Lennox had
been the mother of his children, the destinies of humanity
might have been moulded in a brighter and happier shape.
But, under any circumstances, in order to have worked his
will with his people, he could not have disregarded the in-
flexible spirit of the indomitable John Wilkes.
CHAPTER VII
“NO. 45”
1763
I ORD BUTE resigned office abruptly on the 8th of
April. A much more shrewd politician than his
- enemies were willing to believe, he realised that
his task was ended and that he could serve the
king better as a private councillor than as an officer of the
Crown. His unpopularity was an embarrassment to the
Government ; he had little talent for public life. So he
sought solace amongst his prints and his flowers, still playing
the role of a Maecenas in miniature, a patron of the smaller
fry in art and letters, haughty and aloof to most of mankind,
always giving the impression that he was intensely vain
of his handsome face and fine person ; in the opinion of the
world, a mere lay figure with “ the most beautiful legs in
Europe.” Yet, there were tougher elements in his char-
acter than were evident to the public eye, or he would never
have accomplished a great constitutional change.
Six days before the resignation of his enemy, Wilkes
had crossed the Channel for the purpose of taking his
daughter to Paris, where he wished her to finish her educa-
tion under t^e care of a certain Madame Carpentier.' During
his visit to the French capital he was gratified by “ the great
civilities ” shown to him by the Duke of Bedford, who, in
spite of his political views, entertained him hospitably, but
he complained privately that the ambassador gave bad
dinners with no suppers after his assemblies, " a great
subject of disgust ’’ to the Parisians.* Foreseeing that a
‘ Public Advertiser, March 28, 1763. • Add. MSS. 35,400, fi. 42, 48,
88
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.763
ministerial crisis was imminent, he did not think it wise
to remain away from London for many days, and leaving
Paris on the 6th of April, he reached Calais three days later.
There, while waiting for a packet to take him to England,
he chanced to meet Prince de Croz, the governor of the
tovra, who asked him how far the liberty of the press
extended in England.
“ I cannot tell,” the wit retorted, " but I am trying to
find out.” > Before sailing he wrote the following letter
to his daughter :
Calais, April g, 1763.
My dearest Polly, — I embrace with much pleasure
this opportunity of writing to you by a gentleman’s servant,
who is just arriv’d from England and is now setting out
for Paris. I was very grave, not to say melancholy, almost
the whole way here, having for a time lost my most agree-
able companion, and Mrs. Shephard,* too, lamented it much.
I have generally rode on the little bidets, and have put Mrs.
Shephard and Brown * in the Post-Ghaisc, but I had one
bad fall, and have hurt the thumb of my right hand so
much that I can scarcely write at all. It is so painful
that I wou’d not write to anybody but my dearest daughter,
and to Mr. Foley a letter of thanks on her account. The
tour here you have so lately taken that it can afford nothing
new to entertain you. We saw the treasures and the
reliques at St. Denis, and it will be well worth your while
soon to take a little trip there. I shall certainly be with
you the latter end of May, or beginning of June, and then
we will make the tour of Fontainebleau, Marll, &c., with
Madame Carpentier, if she will be so good to favour us with
her company. ,
We lay at Rouen, two posts from Paris on Wednesday,
on Thursday at Amiens, and last night at Boulogne. We
* Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), v. 315.
* Miss Wilkes's maid.
® Matthew Brown, Wilkes’s servant.
1763]
“NO. 45”
89
have had no accident at all but to my poor thumb, which
is as black as my daughter’s eyes and so stiff that I can
scarcely move it.
A gentleman just arriv’d from England tells me that
Lord Bute is entirely out. I shall not write you any
politicks by the post, for fear of my letters being open’d,
but you shall hear everything important, when any gentle-
man is coming to Paris.
Whatever cloathes you wish for or anything else, desire
Monsieur Carpentier to pay for. Let the bill be sent to him.
Every three months Mr. Foley ^ will pay him again and draw
upon me. I wish that my sweet girl may have every
reasonable pleasure, and I am sure that her good sense
will desire no other. I dare say you will be happy with
Madame Carpentier ; and I have paid them the highest
compliment in trusting them with a treasure I love so
entirely as my dear daughter. Any money you wish for
you may have, but let Monsieur or Madame Carpentier* pay
for everything, exccpt»the postage of letters, which you may
pay yourself. I shall soon write to Madame Carpentier,
and shall enclose it to you, which will save her the postage.
When you are well, I beg you never to miss the Em-
bassador’s chapell on Sunday ; and I trust a good Provi-
dence will favour you with confirm’d health at Paris. Mr.
Foley will put you in a way to go with Mrs. Poyntz, and she
will ever be glad of your company.
I wish you directly to enquire of Mr. Neville, who is
secretary to the Duke of Bedford, about the dancing Master
belonging to> the Court. He mention’d him to me, and he
•s the only man for you to learn of. You may either go to
' A banker at Par^s.
“ Writing to Churchill on the eve of his second visit to Paris on the
of July, Wilkes says : "lam now planning a deep scheme for Madame
l^arpeulier to fall into my mouth in a week," and offers to wager £100
that he will seduce her before the ist of August. Add. MS. 30,880 B.,
^•10. To refer in such terms to the lady to whom he had entrusted his
<^iiughter shows to what depths of moral turpitude he could sink on
occasions.
90 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1763
him, or he to come to see you, as you find it best. By no
means employ any other, and consult Mr. Foley in this,
as in everything. I wish likewise that you wou’d soon get
to the best musick-master and buy a harpsicord, the best
you can.
I hope you receiv’d safe the present of French China,
which I purchas’d for you the morning I left you, and wou’d
convince you, I had not then, (as I never can) forgot you
nor can I remember you without the highest pleasiure.
I wish you to ask Madame Carpentier if England affords
anything she wishes for, and I will bring it her. I please
myself greatly with my summer tour.
I beg you to send the enclos’d to Mr. Foley, and to let
me know what street Baron Holbach lives in. Tell the
Baron I shall send to him by Mr. Stuart. Let me beg of
you, my dearest girl, to write to me in French and om
every week. Be so good as to begin two or three days
before the post sets out, and then I shall have long letters,
all the cliit-chat, what you have seen, and how you like what
you see.
I write no advice to you, because you have as much
sense as anybody I know, and I am sure will conduct your-
self in everything so as to win the esteem and love of every-
one. Let me beg of you freely to write your opinion to me
on everything. I have the highest opinion of you, and
wish to make you happy. You have an excellent genius
given you from heaven, and it will be your own pleasure to
cultivate it. Read the best books and they will be your
pleasure thro’ life. Desire Monsieur Carpentier* to buy for
you Boileau, Racine, and Moliere in small yolumes ; you
cannot read them, as well as Shakespeare, ^Pope, and Svnp,
too often ; yet by no means tire yourself. God has given
you an excellent understanding, but the best land requires
cultivation.
If anything is disagreable to you let ine know and it
shall be alter’d. Pray make my best compliments to
1763] “NO. 45” 91
Monsieur and Madame Carpentier, and to that good lady,
whom I have seen with them. — I am ever, my dearest
Polly, most affectionately yours, John Wilkes.^
Upon reaching London on the evening of the nth of April,
Wilkes learnt that George Grenville, who had been estranged
from Lord Temple ever since he had joined the Bute ministry,
was appointed Prime Minister in place of the favourite.*
On the previous Saturday The North Briton had failed to
make its appearance for the first time since it was estab-
lished, No. 44, the last of the series, being published on the
2nd of April while the editor was in Paris. At the opening
of Parliament, however, on the 19th of the month, the refer-
ences in the King’s Speech to the preliminary articles of
peace induced Wilkes to fling himself once more into the fray,
and he wrote " No. 45 ” of his paper, which was published
on the 23rd of April. It was a trenchant denunciation of
the speech from the Throne, but no more vitriolic than many
of its predecessors, and its author was careful to declare in
his opening sentence that “ the King’s Speech has always
been considered by the Legislature, and by the public at
large, as the speech of the Minister.” *
Having laid down this proposition, which was justified
by precedent, Wilkes proceeded to explain the reason of
his displeasure — " This wedk has given the public the most
abandoned instance of ministerial effrontery ever attempted
to be imposed on mankind. The minister’s speech of last
Tuesday is not to be paralleled in the annals of this country.
I am in dohbt whether the imposition is greater on the
Sovereign, or on the nation. Every friend of his country
must lament that a prince of so many great and amiable
qualities, whom England truly reveres, can be brought to
^ Add. MS. 30*879, f. 8 ; cf. Life of Wilkes ^ J. Almon, ii. 22-4, Printed
in full for the first time.
* PMic j 4 dverliser, April 13, 1763.
* The North Briton (1763), ii. 228.
92 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1753
give the sanction of his sacred name to the most odious
measures and the most unjustifiable public declarations
from a throne ever renowned for truth, honour, and an
unsullied virtue.” After protesting that the references in
the King’s Speech to the King of Prussia contained “an
infamous fallacy,” he went on to assert that " the hotwur
of the Crown ” was “ sunk even to prostitution.” *
Twice previously the prosecution of The North Briton
had been contemplated. On the i8th of November in the
preceding year a warrant had been signed by the Secretary
of State for the arrest of the author, printers, and publishers
of the first twenty-six numbers, but the authorities, who
had failed in their indictment of Entick and Beardmore,
hesitated to strike the blow, the only result of their delibera-
tions being the extinction of Dryden Leach, who, with visions
of Newgate before his eyes, refused to set up in type another
syllable of the paper.* On the i8th of April following the
Attorney-General was inclined to prosecute the editor of
The North Briton for an article about the Pretender, his
father, the great ex-Chancellor, Lord Hardwicke, advising
him to do so.® The Government, therefore, had been merely
biding its time, ready to crush the enemy when a favourable
opportunity should present itself.
At last it had come. In the opinion of the Secretary of
State no better pretext could 1)e found than an article
accusing the Sovereign of telling a lie. To the ministerial
mind it seemed that the public belief in the veracity of the
monarch was at stake, and they believed that all loyal citizens
would agree that the attack upon his honour Inust not be
allowed to go unpunished. Even had the Cabinet been un-
decided it is certain that the young king himself would have
insisted upon a prosecution. George the Third was deeply
* The North Briton {1763), ii. 231, 237. C/. original issue of TheNoht
Briton, No. 43 ; Add. MS. 32,948, f. 161.
» Add. MS. 22,131, f. 29; GuildhaU MS. 214, 4.- “Proofs of Author-
ship.”
* Add. MS. 35,353, f. 312.
“NO. 45”
93
offended. For many months he had brooded in silence while
The North Briton was reviling his dearest friend and hurling
shameful insults against his mother. Living a blameless life
himself, the character of John Wilkes was particularly offen-
sive to his ideas of morality. And now, at last, this same
scurrilous pamphleteer had made a most outrageous attack
upon his own person, not only accusing him of a direct false-
hood, but, what was an even greater offence in the eyes of
" a Patriot King,” insinuating that the responsibility for his
acts and his declarations rested entirely with his ministers.
Naturally, when the Secretaries of State resolved to issue
a warrant for the apprehension of the author, printers,
and publishers of “ No. 45,” their decision met with the
hearty approval of George the Third.^
The triumvirate, who directed the policy of the Govern-
ment, met in hasty conclave. Grenville, the Prime Minister,
a cold, fish-like personage, with a devotion to duty as
intense as that of Javert in the story, believed that he was
in honour bound to make a public example of his old friend,
while his colleagues, Halifax and Egremont, were burning
to avenge the insult that had been offered to their royal
master. All knew that Wilkes was the offender, but since
the publication was anonymous the point at issue was a
delicate one, and to secure absolute proof against the culprit
it was necessary to procefed with caution. In the end a
general warrant was drawn up, authorising the king’s
messengers to arrest “ the authors, printers, and publishers
of a seditious and treasonable paper entitled The North
Briton, No.*45,” and although the ministers suggested that
it would be mere prudent to insert the name of the member
for Aylesbury they were over-ruled by the opinion of the
' Life of Lord Hardwicke^ G. Harris, iii. 341. For references at this
period to the personal hostility of the king towards Wilkes, which is
revealed so often at a later date in “The Correspondence of George the
Third with Lord North/* see Add. MSS. 32, 94^) ff- 201, 234, 275 ; 32,949,
loi, 366 ; 32,954, ff. 65, 123 ; 35.887, f. 77 ; The Grenville Pa^s,
162, 192,
94 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;63
solicitor of the Treasury and the permanent clerks, who
insisted that they could not depart from a long-established
precedent.! There was no innovation in the issue of such
a warrant, the Secretary of State usually adopting this
method when it was necessary to summon a suspected '
person for examination, while in the present case the word
“ treasonable ” was used as a special precaution, so that
Wilkes could not protect himself by pleading his privilege
as a member of Parliament.®
Armed with this mandate, the zealous messengers revelled
in a perfect orgy of arrest, apprehending no fewer than i
forty-nine persons, mostly journeymen printers, in the space !
of three days. Dryden Leach, who had not composed a
line of the obnoxious periodical since No. 26, was the first
victim, being dragged from his bed at Crane Court in the early
hours of Friday, the 29th of April, and everyone of his
employees arrested at the same time — suspicion falling upon
him because Wilkes, for whom he was reprinting a new
edition of The North Briton in two 'volumes, had been re-
cently a frequent visitor at his shop.® Later in the morning
George Kearsley, the Ludgate Street bookseller, was also
taken to the house of Robert Blackmore, one of the mes-
sengers, where he was detained a prisoner, while all his
servants were seized and his papers confiscated as fast as
the agents of the Government tould lay their hands upon
them.
Wilkes was much perturbed when the news of these
events reached him. Long immunity made him regard
himself as a chartered libertine, and he had no dfesire to wear
a crown of martyrdom. Moreover, he had -begun to hope
that the authorities might think it worth, while to close his
mouth by other methods, it having been rumoured that he
^ Gentleman's Magazine ^ xxxix. 542 ; Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon, i. 97 *
• History of England ^ J. Adolphus, i. 122; ef. Lord Hardwicke's
opinion, Add. MS. 32,948, f. 199.
• Add. MS, 22,132, f. 71.
“NO. 45
1763]
95
would be appointed Governor of Canada, a post which he
would have been able to accept at that period from his old
friend, George Grenville, without incurring the charge of
venality.* So he hurried off to Blackmore’s house, where,
in the presence of the messenger, he was permitted to have
an interview with Kearslcy, who informed him in re-
proachful terms that he had been arrested for publishing
the famous “No. 45.” Assuming an air of confidence
Wilkes endeavoured to console his unlucky henchman,
telling him that it seemed “ a very innocent paper,’’ that
the Opposition would “ support and protect a man suffering
in a good cause,’’ and that he would go at once to Lord
Chief Justice Pratt at the Court of Common Pleas and
apply for a writ of habeas corpus.*
Soon after liis client had departed on this errand, Kearsley
was brought before the Secretaries of State, to whom in
an agony of terror he admitted that the member for Ayles-
bury had employed him to publish The North Briton, the
later numbers of which had been printed by Richard Balfe
at the Sign of the Bell in the Old Bailey. Consequently,
when Wilkes returned to the messenger’s house late in the
afternoon, having failed to procure the release of the pub-
lisher owing to the adjournment of the court, he learnt
that the printer and his workmen had been arrested,
and were at that moment being examined by the ministers'.
Cool and imperturbable still, although he knew now that
he might be made a prisoner at any moment, Wilkes re-
mained with the faint-hearted Kearsley for several hours,
endeavouring to arouse his courage, sending out in due
course for a good supper, plying him with wine, and it was
twelve o’clock before he took his, departure, reeling home, •
' Public Advertiser^ April i6, May 12, 1763 ; cf. June 21, 1771 ; Euro-
pean Magazine^ xxxiii. 85 ; Cat. of Satirical Prints (Brit. Mus.), iv. 266 ;
^Vllkos's Marginalia, in Hist, of Late Minority {Brit. Mus.), p. 400 ; cf. Life
Malone, J. Prior, pp. 361-2. There seems to be little doubt that Wilkes
iiad applied for the post.
* Wilkes’s Marginalia, p. 341.
96 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.763
according to the report of the messengers, very much the
worse for liquor.^
Meanwhile, Balfe had confessed to the Secretaries of
State that he had printed “ No. 45 ” from a manuscript
supplied by John Wilkes, and Charles Yorke, the Attorney-
General, and Fletcher Norton, the Solicitor-General, had been
called in to give their advice. Apart from all question as
to whether the paper was “ treasonable ” or “ seditious,"
both the law officers were agreed that it was a hbel, and
since the publication of a libel was interpreted as “ tending
to a breach of the peace,” they considered that the author
could not be protected by his privilege as a member of
Parliament.* Fortified by this opinion, the ministers
ordered the culprit’s immediate arrest, and although Lord
Halifax suggested that Wilkes's name should be inserted in
the warrant, which already had done duty on three occasions,
he was over-ruled by the advice of Philip Webb, the Secre-
tary to the Treasury, who observed that “it was better not.”*
The three messengers, however, did not relish the task
of apprehending a resolute gentleman like the member for
Aylesbury at such a late hour, even though Lord Egremont
had told them to “ drag him from his bed ” that night.
Their leader, Nathan Carrington, “ the cleverest of all
ministerial terriers,” happened to be unwell, and some of
the others do not seem to havd shown implicit loyalty to
their employers. Making the excuse that it was improper
to arrest Mr. Wilkes while he was “ in liquor,” they waited
until the next day, but were on duty again at sunrise, watch-
ing all the approaches to Great George Street, %o that their
prisoner should not escape.
» Wilkes’s Marginalia, p. 345 ; Add. MS. 23,132, f. 74 ; Guildto®
MSS., passim. We have only the doubtful authority of the messengers
for the statement that Wilkes was intoxicated.
* Guildhall MS. 214, 2, vol. i. pp. 30-2. Privilege of Parliament
rendered a member immune from arrest in all cases except ** treason»
felony, and actual breach of the peace." •
® Hist, of the Late Minority (J. Almon), 4th imp,, p. 147 ; Lit. Anecdott^
of Eighteenth Century y J. Nichols, ii. 280.
1/63]
"NO. 45
97
At six o’clock in the morning the light-hearted Wilkes
sallied forth from No. 13, dressed in his scarlet coat with
jack boots and cocked hat, and he had scarcely walked
a dozen paces from his home when he ran into the arms
of his new acquaintance, Robert Blackmore, who was
waiting for him near the comer of Little George Street.
With a good-humoured smile he told him that he had an
appointment with a gentleman at the Temple, but pro-
mised to come to his house at nine o’clock to breakfast
with his friends Leach and Kearsley. The officer allowed
him to pass, and so did James Watson, another of the
messengers, who was stationed in Parliament Street, the use
of a little judicious “ palmistry ” accounting no doubt for
this complaisance.^ Free for the moment from his perse-
cutors Wilkes hurried down the Strand to Balfe’s place of
business in the Old Bailey. The place was locked and the
officials had taken away the keys, but he secured the help
of John Williams, a loyal compositor, who had managed to
escape arrest, and soon the loafers in the street were amazed
to see a gentleman in uniform on the highest rung of a
ladder breaking through a top storey window at the Sign of
the Bell, while Mrs. Balfe looked on with tacit approval.
On making his way into the printing-shop he found No. 46
of The North Briton was already set up in type, and after
hurriedly displacing “ the forme,” and also, it is said, tearing
up the original manuscript of “ No. 45,” the wily editor
descended by the same way that he had come, satisfied
; that he had done his best to baffle the Government. By
half-past ei^t he was strolling once more along Great
George Street, ’when he was accosted by the messengers,
who told him that* they had a warrant for his arrest. In a
moment his demeanour had changed and he stepped back,
stern and menacing, with his hand on his sword. Vowing
^ Robert Wodcl’s letter to Philip Webb of June 21, Guildhall MS,
3 . vol. -ii. ; cf. Hist. MSS. Comm.^ loth Report, Appendix, Part I,
P- 357.
G
98 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES fye,
that he “ would put to death ” the first man who attempted
any violence in the street, he ordered the luckless officials to
follow him home, where he promised to discuss the matter
with them in private.*
The manoeuvre was a crafty one on Wilkes’s part, for
directly he had entered his own house, where there were a
couple of faithful men-servants to help him in case of need,
he began to question the legality of the warrant, protesting
that it was a " general warrant,” which mentioned no names,
and might have been served with equal justice upon the
Prime Minister, or upon Lord Corke, his next-door neigh-
bour.® In a little while, also, he managed to send word of
what had happened to Lord Temple and other friends,
begging them to demand his release under writ of habeas
corpus at the Court of Common Pleas, on the ground that
his arrest was an illegal one. Scarcely had he despatched
this message when the burly Charles Churchill strolled in,
unaware of the danger that threatened him, and while he
was gazing with surprise at the officers of the law, Wilkes
hastened to put him on his guard before he could open his
lips to betray himself.
" Good morning, Mr. Thomson,” he observed, as if he
were addressing the most casual acquaintance, “ how does
Mrs. Thomson do to-day ? Does she dine in the country ? ”
Clumsy blusterer though he 'was, the hint was not lost
upon the sub-editor of The North Briton. “ Mrs. Thomson,"
he replied, “ was waiting for him, so he had merely called
for a moment to inquire after Mr. Wilkes’s health.” Then,
after a few common-place remarks he took Ms departure
and quitted London the same day, the Government never
being able to discover his hiding-place.* ,
Meanwhile Wilkes, who wished to mark time till the
1 Wilkes’s Marginalia, pp. 345-7 ; Guildhall MS. 214, 2, vol. '•
pp. 33-40 ; Gentleman’s Magazine, xxxvii. 248.
* Lord Corke lived at No. 12 Great George SCreet. Vide Court ad
Citv Register for 1764, p. 19.
® Gentleman s Magazine^ xxxvii. 248.
“NO. 45"
1763]
99
vvrit of habeas corpus was procured, remained firm in his
refusal to accompany the officers to the residence of Lord
Halifax, notwithstanding the many courteous messages sent
by the Secretary himself to demand his attendance. About
eleven o’clock several of his friends forced their way into
the house, in spite of the protests of Watson and Black-
more, who had been reinforced by two more of their com-
rades as well as a constable. One Humphrey Cotes was the
first arrival, a wine-merchant of some notoriety, who had
become a general factotum to Wilkes in the fashion of
Dell of Aylesbury, a cheery, loyal soul with the face of an
Apollo and the temperament of Bacchus, always dabbling
in political intrigues under the guidance of Lord Temple,
much to the detriment of his wine business.* Others quickly
followed, among them a solicitor named Alexander Philipps,
of Cecil Street, foreseeing that his friend would prove an
incomparable client, and soon the house in Great George
Street was filled with a clamorous little crowd who urged
Wilkes to remain firm in his defiance of the Government.
At length the messengers in despair were obliged to inform
Lord Halifax that they required assistance, as they were
being intimidated by threats; whereupon the minister
requested Edward Weston, his Under-Secretary of State, to
proceed at once to the scene of action in order to discover
what further devilry their enemy was perpetrating. Weston,
however, a timorous gentleman in a weak state of health,
begged to be excused, so Robert Wood, the Under-Secretary
for the Northern Department under Lord Egremont, under-
took the unpleasant task.*
Shortly betore one o'clock Wilkes appeared to change
his mind, consenting at last to accompany the messengers
to the house of the minister. No doubt his friends had
assured him that he was certain to obtain his habeas
corpus from the. Court of Conunon Pleas, or indeed they
' HowelVs State Trials, xix. 1153-6.
^ Add. MSS. 22,131, ff. 58, 220 ; Guildhall MS. 214, 3, vol. ii.
100
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1763
may have whispered that Chief Justice Pratt had already
stigmatised the general warrant as “ a most extraordinary
document,” which no law could authorise.' Determined that
every detail of his arrest should assume the aspect of bur-
lesque, Wilkes delivered his sword with mock solemnity to
Chisholme, the constable, desiring that his sedan might be
brought to the front door, although Lord Halifax’s house
was only at the end of the street. Then, bidding adieu to
his friends, he took his scat in the chair, and escorted by a
dozen messengers and attended by a curious crowd he was
borne along the road in the direction of the park, peering
through the glass all the while with a smile of derision,
delighted at his mock triumph.
On reaching Lord Halifax’s residence at the corner of
Great George Street, he was ushered into a large room
looking out on to Bird-cage Walk. The two Secretaries of
State were sitting at a table, the faint-hearted Edward
Weston standing beside his chief, while Philip Carteret
Webb, the solicitor to the Treasury, and Lovell Stanhope,
the law clerk, were present to give advice. Requesting his
prisoner to take a seat, the genial Halifax observed that he
was sorry that a gentleman of Mr. Wilkes’s rank and
abilities should ” engage against his King and His Majesty’s
Government,” while Lord Egrernont, with his nose in the
air, regarded the red-coated militia man with an expression
of ineffable contempt. Not in the least abashed Wilkes
replied that the king had no more zealous subject than
himself, and after declaring that there never was a prince
who had the misfortune to be served by such* ” ignorant,
insolent, and despotic ministers,” he threateiffed to impeach
the Government for the outrage they had committed against
the liberties of the subject in arresting him “under a
General Warrant which named nobody.” Having obtained
the opinion of Lord Hardwicke througl^ the medium of
' Lives of the Chancellors, John, Lord Campbell, v. 246:- Add. MS-
32,948, f. 172.
lOI
1763] “NO. 45”
Charles Yorke, the Secretaries of State had decided to adopt
the attitude that the warrant had been employed solely for
the purpose of examining a suspected man, so Lord Halifax,
in a wise endeavour to avoid further argument, brought
forth a paper with a long list of questions and proceeded to
interrogate his captive.'
Being gifted with a sense of humour, he must have been
amused, in spite of his official position, by the strategy of
the pamphleteer. For Wilkes declined to answer a single
question, claiming his privilege from arrest as a member of
Parliament, assuring their lordships that although he ad-
mitted that their curiosity was a laudable one, “ all the
quires of paper on their lordships’ table should be as milk-
white at the end of his examination as they were at the
beginning.” Only once did he deign a reply, when Lord
Halifax inquired if he had attended any of the dinners given
by the Opposition, answering in humorous double erdente
that he did not “ sit down at table, but only blew the coals.” ®
At length, after several hours had been wasted in this
fashion, the ministers perceived that neither threats nor
promises of indulgence would persuade John Wilkes to make
any confession. Once he turned with a scornful squint upon
Lord Egremont, who was the only foe against whom he
cherished a real enmity, assuring him that even if he “ em-
ployed tortures ” he would not utter a single word. Anxious
to treat him with all possible leniency. Lord Halifax asked
whether he chose to be a prisoner in his own house, or at
the Tower, or in Newgate, which elicited the tart reply
that he ‘‘^ever received an obligation but from a friend.”
Upon being informed that he would be sent to the Tower,
he said that hq hoped they would place him in a room
where no " Scotchman ” had ever been a prisoner, " if,” he
added with a chuckle, “ it is possible to find one.” Then, as
* Add. MS. 35,^53, ff. 316, 318 ; Lift of Lord Hardwicke, G. Harris,
'‘i-343. ■
‘ Memoirs of Lord Rochmgham, Lord Albemarle, i. 168.
102 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1763
Lord Halifax rose to put an end to the conversation, Wilkes
essayed a parting shot at Lord Egremont, declaring with
emphasis that if the messengers had carried out the order
to drag him from bed at midnight he would have " laid the
first man who had entered his chamber dead upon the
spot.” A moment later he had recovered his temper,
praising some “ capital pictures ” that hung on the walls.*
While the Secretaries of State were preparing a new
warrant authorising two fresh messengers to deliver their
prisoner into the custody of the Constable of the Tower,
Wilkes was taken into another room, where he found Philip
Webb engaged in a heated argument with Messrs. Walsh
and Hopkins, two brother members of Parliament. These
gentlemen had brought the news that Chief Justice Pratt
had granted a writ of habeas corpus commanding Watson
and Blackmorc to bring Wilkes at once to the Court of
Common Pleas in Westminster Hall, and that the document
might arrive at any moment. The ministers, however,
knew that they had out-manoeuvred their opponents.
Since the Prothonotary’s office was closed they were aware
that the writ could not be “ served out ” for some time.’
Moreover, it was practically a sheet of waste paper, as the
prisoner was no longer in the custody of Watson or Black-
more. So, about four o’clock, on the authority of the new
warrant, Wilkes was placed once more in his chair and
hurried off to the Tower of London, where he was lodged
in the house of Major Rainsford, the lieutenant-governor.
At the same time, out of courtesy to the House of
Commons, a message was sent to the Speaker fo tell him
what had been done.*
* Gentleman's Magaziney xxxvii. 248-50 ; Guildhall MSS., passim !
Howell's State Trials^ xix. 1153-68; Life of WilkeSy J. Almon, i. 98-105;
The North Briton {W. Bingley, 1769), vol. i., Part I, i.-iv. ; Add. MS.
22,131, passim.
* Public Advertiser y May 5, 1763 ; Collection of Genuine Papers in ihi
Case of John Wilkes (Paris, 1767), p. 27.
* Hist, MSS. Comm.y loth Report, Appendix, Part I, p. 355.
“NO. 45
1763]
103
During the whole of the afternoon No. 13 Great George
Street was a scene of uproar and confusion. The officials
ransacked the premises in their search for incriminating
documents, while Wilkes’s friends did all in their power
to embarrass and obstruct them. Robert Wood paid no
less than three visits to the house to see that the messengers
were doing their duty, bringing Lovell Stanhope with him
to superintend the collection of the papers. Cotes and
Philipps followed the deputation into every room, giving
vent to idle threats against the Government as each fresh
drawer was broken open, and after the business in the
Court of Common Pleas had been finished they were re-
inforced by Lord Temple himself, accompanied by Arthur
Beardmore, his solicitor. Philip Webb, too, arrived on the
scene soon afterwards, on a special mission from the Secre-
taries of State, assisting in the pillage with official zeal,
unlocking various desks and cupboards with his own
hands. When the keys were not forthcoming the locks
were picked by a smith, every paper that was found being
thrown into a sack. Within the space of an hour or two
the house could not have presented a more dilapidated
appearance had a gang of burglars been working there the
whole night.
At last, when every room had been examined, the officials
prepared to take their departure. Lord Temple was asked
if he desired to be present while the papers were sealed up,
but with the scornful retort that it was “ too barbarous an
act for any human eye to witness,” he hurried away to
discover how Wilkes was faring in the Tower of London. A
few minutes letter the rest of his noisy little band followed
his example, leaving the authorities to finish their work
undisturbed. The well-filled sack was placed in a coach
!ind driven to the Treasury under the care of Messrs. Wood
Stanhope, while Philip Webb, who had been mainly
responsible for the whole of this clumsy prosecution, went
off to Lord Hardwicke with sore misgivings to ascertain
104 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.763
what that great constitutional lawyer thought of the
situation,'
Although none of his friends were allowed to see him,
and he was guarded by warders who never left him night
or day, Wilkes remained in the best of spirits during his
confinement in the Tower, overjoyed at the splendid
opportunity for self-advertisement that his enemies had
afforded him. One of his first tasks on the morning after
his arrest was to write to his daughter, a copy of which
letter he sent to the newspapers at the earliest opportunity,
informing her of his imprisonment, and assuring her that
he had " done nothing unworthy of a man of honour.”
Both on Sunday and Monday his friends made several
attempts to obtain an interview with him, many of the
great Whig nobles, including the Dukes of Grafton and
Bolton, paying a visit to the Tower to show their dis-
approval of the general warrant. Major Rainsford, how-
ever, would allow no one to see his prisoner, pleading
Government orders, even though Philip Webb, on being
informed of the fact, was willing that Wilkes should be
allowed to consult his solicitor.*
Meanwhile, the exertions to obtain an effective writ of
habeas corpus still continued, application being made
again to the Court of Common Pleas. Although such
procedure was unusual Lord Temple and his myrmidons
were well aware that Chief Justice Sir Charles Pratt, who
was an old henchman of Pitt, was much more likely to be
favourable to their cause than Lord Mansfield, the Govern-
ment watch-dog, who presided in the Court*, of King’s
Bench. After a delay of twenty-four hours, the writ was
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, j. 107-8, 141-7; liowelfs State Trials,
xix. 1153-68; Hist, of the Late Minority (4th imp.), pp. 158-62; The
North Briton (W. Bingley, 1769), vol. i., Part I, i.-iv. ; Add. MSS. 30,81*5,
ff. 41-54; 35,353. f- 316: Ocntleman’s Magazine, xxxiii. pp. 239-45!
Public Advertiser, May 5, 1763. ,
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i, 108-9; Collection of Genuine Paptfs
(Paris, 1767), pp. 29-33.
1763]
“NO. 45
105
granted, and on Tuesday the 3rd of May, at about half-
past ten in the morning, Wilkes was brought from the Tower
in a coach, passing over London Bridge and through St.
George’s Fields in his journey to Westminster Hall. On
being led into court he addressed the judges in a brief
but forcible speech, complaining of his “ unparalleled ”
grievances, protesting that the liberty of an English subject
should “ not be sported away with impunity.” The oration
was received with a tumult of applause and “ great clappings
of hands ” from a large crowd of sympathetic spectators, upon
which the Lord Chief Justice threatened to commit some of
the disturbers. Having listened to a long argument from
Sergeant Glynn on behalf of the prisoner, the court censured
the messengers for their conduct in regard to the first writ
of habeas corpus, and ordered that Mr. Wilkes’s friends
should be allowed to visit him whenever they pleased.
The proceedings came to an end soon after two o’clock,
the case being adjourned until Friday, the 6th of May, and
as the hero of the moment was led back to his coach the
old hall rang with shouts of “ Liberty ! Liberty ! Wilkes
for ever ! ” '
On the appointed day the stately building was filled
with a great throng, for all the town had learnt of the brave
fight that the member for Aylesbury was making against
the Government. Bolder than ever, for he knew that the
populace had rallied to his side, he faced his judges with un-
daunted confidence. His voice, gruff, but sonorous, swelled
loud with indignation as he recounted the indignities of
which he had been the victim.
" My Lords,” he cried, “ . . . . The liberty of all peers
and gentlemen— and (what touches me more sensibly) that
of all the middling and inferior set of people, who stand
oaost in need of protection — ^is, in my case, this day to be
‘ Add. MSS. 22)<I3I. £• 61 : 35,353) f- 3^5 : 35.400> f- 54 : Life of
» likes, J. Almon, i. 109 - 11 ; Public Advertiser, May 4 ; Collection of
l^nuine Papers {Paris, 1767 ), p. 34 .
106 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.763
finally decided upon ; a question of such importance as
to determine at once whether English liberty be a reality
or a shadow. Your own free-bom hearts will feel with
indignation and compassion all that load of oppression
under which I have so long laboured— close imprisonment,
the effect of premeditative malice ; all access to me for
more than two days denied ; my house ransacked and
plundered ; my most private and secret concerns divulged ;
every vile and malignant insinuation, even of high treason
itself, no less industriously than falsely circulated by my
cruel and implacable enemies, together with all the various
insolence of office, — ^form but a part of my unexampled
ill-treatment. . .
Not a great speech worthy of the occasion, unworthy
indeed of the author of The North Briton, but one likely
to tickle the ears of most of the listeners, for, since the man
knew his audiences, the catch-phrase was his chief stock-
in-trade.* All too, and especially Wilkes himself, were
awaiting on tenterhooks for the decision of the Chief Justice.
As soon as Sergeant Glynn, counsel for the prisoner, had
stated his objections, the judge began to speak, a brisk little
man with bright eyes, brimming over with self-conscious
importance. In the galleries above the court the well-
dressed mob of peers and politicians forgot their snuff and
gossip in an instant ; on the benches beneath the sturdy
patriots bent forward with grim, expectant faces ; the
buzzing throng of shop-folk and artisans, standing behind
in a dense swaying mass, became still and silent.
With obvious enjoyment and much display* of gesture.
Chief Justice Pratt began to deliver his opinion, dealing
solely with Mr. Wilkes’s commitment to Jhe Tower, since
the question of the legality of the general warrant was not
at issue. Before he had finished with the first point of his
argument there were many sour faces in the body of the
9
1 Life of Wilkes f J. Almon, i. 117.
* Cf. Statesmen of George lily Lord Brougham, 3rd series, p, 187.
“NO. 45”
i7''3l
107
court, while most of those in the gallery were wreathed in
buiiles, for the judge declared that the Secretaries of State
had the same power as a magistrate to commit a suspected
person to prison. Yet, though he found no fault with the
second warrant, it was soon evident that he was summing
up in favour of the popular hero, for he passed on to
;onsidcr whether privilege of Parliament, which protected
member from arrest in all cases except treason, felony,
ind breach of the peace would shield the author at The North
Briton from the consequences of publishing a libel. It was
long argument, illustrated by numerous appeals to pre-
xdent, and an hour had sped by before the final word was
>pokcn. The verdict was one that many had dreaded but
Host had desired.
“ We are all of the opinion that a libel is not a breach
uf the peace ...” declared the Lord Chief Justice,
‘Mr. Wilkes is entitled to his privilege and must be dis-
-harged.”
Then came the crisp, curt mandate : " Let him be
discharged.” ‘
Scarcely had Pratt pronounced his decision when the
riumphant Wilkes burst forth into a second speech — ^brief,
■carcely articulate, inadequate as before— murmur ing his
‘poor thanks,” praising his ingenious counsel Glynn,
apostrophising the “spirit of liberty.” Then, finished
xtor that he was, he turned about and made a low bow
^0 the vast crowd. A mighty shout shook the rafters of
he ancient hall, the scene of so many other great occasions
n the natidh’s history, such a shout as had never been
leard in that place since the acquittal of the Seven Bishops.
" Whigs for ever and no Jacobites,” rose the cry, which
Welled into a deep-chested roar of “ Wilkes and Liberty." *
And while the popular hero was revelling in the first
I Howell's State Trials, xix. 987-90.
' Add. MS. 32,94!?, f. 235 ; Life of Hardwicke, G. Harris, iii. 349-50.
Hardwicke disapproved of Pratt's judgment. Vide Life ofHardmekt,
■ C. Yorke, iii. 466.
io8 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,763
experiences of his new power an incident of some import-
ance in his life was taking place a few yards distant, quite
unknown to him. Crouching behind a pillar that supported
one of the galleries an old artist with a round face and snub
nose — a veritable little pug-dog of a man — ^had been making
a sketch of the prisoner while the judge was delivering his
address. Poor thin-skinned Hogarth was taking his revenge !
A cruel revenge indeed, cruel at least to any other than the
pachydermatous Wilkes, for no likeness in the world was ever
limned with more unmerciful severity. All the facial ugli-
ness was exaggerated, the swivel eye, the flat deformed nose,
the heavy twisted jaw, and the portrait leers and grins
and squints with an expression of spiteful mockery — craft,
perfidy, and malevolence written upon every feature. It
might have stood for a typical portrait of the Prince of
Darkness. Ten days later it was published as an etching
at the price of one shilling, and appeared in every print-
shop, but the caricature failed to wound the feelings of the
victim, who always made a pose of glorying in his ugliness,
In after years he was often heard to remark with a merry
laugh, " I am growing more like Hogarth's portrait every
day.”^
For a few moments Wilkes remained in an ante-room
at the back of the court, receiving the congratulations of
his friends, and then, unable to postpone the enjoyment of
his triumph, he hurried through the Ordnance Office into
Old Palace Yard. By his side limped a tall stooping
figure with star and ribbon, pale as death, and smiling with
pleasure, whispering incessantly to his companion as they
walked on, while the people in the pas.sages, recognising
him, murmured to each other, " Earl Temple — the lord of
Stowe.” With all his aplomb Wilkes was abashed for 0
moment when he came into the square and found himself
* The Political Register, i. 288-9 ; Hogarth's Works, J. Ireland a®'
J. Nichols, ii. 224 ; Cat. of Sat. Prints in Brit, Mus., iv. 278-9 ; HogarAi
Austin Dobson, p. 135.
“NO. 45"
17^-3]
109
[in the midst of a tempestuous multitude, ten thousand
strong, every man of them his loyal subjects, acclaiming
} him as though he were their king. Choosing to go home
i on foot so that all should see him, he made his way slowly
: tiirough the crowded streets with a small bodyguard of
friends, while the mob closed around, waving hats, blowing
1 Iiorns, cheering madly, everyone pressing forward to catch
I a glimpse of him as he passed along, grinning and bowing
, and squinting, the proudest and happiest man in the whole
of England. On his arrival at No. 13 Great George Street
he hurried upstairs into the dining-room, and, opening one
of the windows, showed himself to the crowd below, who,
at tire sight of his cocked hat and sallow face, burst forth
into a fresh tempest of acclamation. And as he gazed
upon the sea of upturned faces he must have felt the glow
of pride that every great man experiences when he realises
for the first time that his name has become a household
word on the lips of his fellow-countrymen.*
* Public Advertiser, May 7 ; St. James's Chronicle, May 5-7, 1763 ;
Gentleman s Magazine, xxxiii. 239-43 ; London Magazine, xxxii. 261-7 •
Court Magazine, 1763, p. 247; Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H.
Walpole, i. 219-21; Hist, of England, J. Adolphus, i. 124-5.
CHAFl'ER VIII
THE PRINTING PRESS IN GREAT GEORGE STREET
1763
I -^HE failure of the attempt to crush Wilkes had
inflicted a heavy blow upon the prestige of the
Government, but the whole incident also became
a source of much embarrassment to the Opposi-
tion, in spite of the fact that in the three grave constitutional
questions arising out of the case the Whigs were fortunate
enough to find themselves on the popular side. Although
all were unanimous that the general warrant had been
illegal, that a writ of habeas corpus had been infringed,
and that privilege of Parliament had been violated, a large
number had an uneasy suspicion that it might prove a
dangerous experiment to make political capital out of the
woes and sufferings of the member for Aylesbury. Not-
withstanding the arbitrary treatment of the popular hero,
his behaviour to the king had alienated numbers of moderate
men, and many a stalwart Whig feared that his extrava-
gances would cause dissension in the ranks of the party.
Some of the leaders, indeed, almost wrung their hands
in dismay over “ the unfortunate affair.” The super-
annuated Newcastle, still clinging to his chieftainship, ran
hither and thither among his followers, striving to rally
the disunited forces, restless and clamorovis as a blundering
sheep-dog whose flock is beyond his control. ” Down with
the ministers and God save the King,” was the battle-cry
of the respectables — a contradiction in terms, though Lord
Hardwicke had chosen it, for George and* his Government
were identical in every respect. Hardwicke, hirnself, the
THE PRINTING PRESS
III
greatest of lawyers, who bestowed upon his profession the
same love and veneration that a poet or a painter gives
to his art, could not resist the fascination of offering secret
( uunsel to the Government, while at the same time he was
teaching his friends how to take advantage of the embarrass-
ments of their opponents/ Under his guidance some of the
magnates of the party made a display of loyalty by an
ostentatious attendance at a lev&e. All of them neverthe-
less were loud in condemnation of the Star-Chamber
methods adopted by the Secretaries of State. The “ great
Limilies,” led by the Dukes of Devonshire and Portland,
advised moderation, but were resolved to oppose any
attack upon parliamentary privilege. In the opinion of
such as these No. 45 was an infamous libel, but that did
not excuse a gross violation of the liberty of the subject.
The noisy minority attached to Lord Temple took a
very different view. In their eyes the turbulent Mr. Wilkes
was one of the most persecuted of mankind. It seemed to
them that the Opposition was bound in honour to avenge
his wrongs. Nor had they the slightest doubt as to the
expediency of espousing his cause, all being convinced that
it might be used as a means of destroying the ministry.
Believing that the nation had realised at last that the
principle of constitutional government was at stake, they
were sure that the cry of " Wilkes and Liberty ” would
bring the Whigs back to their own again. Like the author
himself, they protested that No. 45 was a " very innocent
paper,” an attack upon the Premier and his myrmidons
undoubtedljH but not intended as a reflection upon his
Majesty the King. Hence it was that Lord Temple had
called upon aU the^ party to make a pilgrimage to the Tower,
and filled the press with lurid reports of the cause ciUbre.^
' Add. MSS. 35>35*. 35° : 35,353, 316, 318, 322, 324 ; 32,948,
n 188, 199; 35,422, f. 255.
‘ For the opinions of the Whig leaders in the early stages of the Wilkes
Ti' stion, see ” Hardwicke MSS.” 35,352-3, 35,400, 35,422 ; Newcastle
Mss. 32,948-50, passim.
1 12 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
The most powerful member of the Opposition adopted
another attitude entirely. Pitt indeed held the same
opinion as his fractious brother-in-law with regard to the
treatment that Wilkes had suffered at the hands of the
Government, but he was by no means disposed to acclaim
him to the world as a martyr. Of late years his intercourse
with the member for Aylesbury had almost ceased, and he
regarded him, both from a social and political standpoint,
as a dangerous acquaintance. Yet, though he was un-
willing to help Wilkes in posing as a popular hero, he was
ready to resist any attempt to curtail the privileges of
Parliament or to interfere with the liberty of the press.
Like Temple, he was eager to replace the Tory despotism
by a ministry that was founded upon “ true Revolution
principles,” and, contrary to the opinion of the Newcastles
and Hardwickes, he agreed that this object might be accom-
plished by utilising the Wilkes agitation as a party weapon.
Yet, unlike Temple, he was resolved not to form any con-
nection with the agitator himself.*
Not one, however, of the great Whig magnates looked
upon the situation with clear, unprejudiced eyes. The
pliable Grafton, who dared to visit the Tower but shrank
from offering bail to the prisoner ; the wily Shelburne, who
was ready to resign office because the Government had
violated the constitution, but would have no truck with
the man in whose person it had been violated ; the insipid
Rockingham, who, expecting the reversion of the leader-
ship, regarded the Wilkes problem, like the rest of the great
families, as a most unlucky entanglement, tPiese and all
the others imagined that the " principles of the Revolution "
and the integrity of the Whig party were .at stake. But as
a matter of fact the nation cared for neither of these things-
Though always eager to cheer for Pitt and howl at Bute,
the mass of the people were not disposed to lament greatly
> Add. MSS. 35,422, ff. 246, 255 ; Grenville Papers, ii. 199 ; Lift of
Lord Shelburne, E. Fitzmauricc, i. 299 ; Chatham Correspondence, ii. 24O *•
1763]
THE PRINTING PRESS 113
even though the king should choose to ostracise Whiggism
for another decade. The terms Whig and Tory no longer
aroused popular enthusiasm. It mattered little to either
the mob or to the middle-class whether the King’s Friends
or the Revolution Families held possession of place and
power.
With the arrest of Wilkes a new spirit had gone abroad
throughout the land. In saying that the editor of The
'North Briton was “ the life and soul of the Opposition,”
the Duke of Devonshire had enunciated a truth that was soon
to be demonstrated. The farmer who groaned beneath the
cider tax, the labourer who grumbled at the price of bread,
the weaver who desired a rise of wages, these and all other
malcontents believed that they would find a heaven-born
champion of their grievances in the gay, squinting politician
who was able to win a single-handed battle against all the
forces of government. Perceiving how valiantly he fought
for his own rights, they were convinced that he would
fight as resolutely for the rights of mankind. Thus, an
unexpected, and a perhaps unwelcome, greatness was thrust
upon him, and he became the first leader of the new party
of progress that was beginning to break away from the two
old political combinations labelled Whig and Tory. “Wilkes
and Liberty ” was the birth-cry of British Radicalism.
While his enemy was still imprisoned in the Tower the
king ordered him to be removed from the command of the
Buckinghamshire militia, while the day after the triumph
in the Court of Common Pleas Lord Temple was deprived
of his Lord-Lieutenancy.^ Meanwhile Wilkes also had
renewed hostilities, despatching the following letter to the
Secretaries of Statp soon after he reached home : —
My Lords, — On my return from Westminster Hall . . .
I find that my house has been robbed, and am informed
* Guildhall MS. 214, 3, vol. ii., vid^ Letter from J. Rivers to P. C. Webb.
^nnville Papers, ii. 55.
H
114 life of JOHN WILKES [1,63
that the stolen goods are in the possession of one or both
of your lordships. I therefore insist that you do forthwith
return them.
To this frivolous badinage the ministers retorted that
the king had ordered the Attorney-General to take legal
proceedings, instructions to that effect being conveyed to
Charles Yorke in a letter from Lord Halifax two days later.'
Yorke, however, was in constant communication with his
father. Lord Hardwicke, who watched every incident in
the strange cause with infinite care, feeling each thread oi
the tangled web with a superfine touch like a placid old
spider — ^to which Hogarth had compared him ; and Yorke
soon found himself entangled in a network of red tape. The
dread of setting the Courts of King’s Bench and Common
Pleas by the ears began to haunt him. Privilege of Par-
liament, too, was an intricate problem, the Commons being
as jealous as a woman of their accustomed prerogatives.
It seemed the wisest course in the opinion of the law officers,
and “ the triumvirate ” acquiesced, to wait until the House
was sitting, when it would be possible to crush Wilkes by
censure or impeachment with the aid of the Government
majority. So though “ an information was exhibited ”
against the author of The North Briton, Wilkes evaded it by
pleading his privilege, and the ministers hesitated to pro-
ceed further, a humiliating predicament for an impetuous
young king, whose mother had been slandered and whose
dearest ambitions were thwarted by a bankrupt libertine.’
Far from being dismayed by the threat of Government
prosecution, Wilkes applied to Sir John Fielding at Bow
Street as soon as he received the ministerial reply to demand
ft
1 Hardwicke MS. 35,887, f. 77. Record Office Papers re John Wilkes,
vol. i. p. 280, No. 394.
» Add. MSS. 32,948, f. 371 ; 3^949, iQi ; 35s422, f. 246 ; Historic
Gleanings, J. E. Thorold Rogers, p. 160 ; Grenville P^apers, ii. 72 ; ,
of House of Commons, xxix. 667 ; A Complete Collection of Genuine !
(Paris, 1767), p. 53 ; Life of Lord Hardwicke, P. C, Yorke, iii, 49S1
,;63] THE PRINTING PRESS 115
a warrant to search for his stolen papers at the houses of
the Secretaries of State. Naturally the blind magistrate
declined to interfere, whereupon the applicant, in order to
impress the multitude, feigned indignation.
“ You refuse me, sir,” he thundered, “ then, sir, you
shall hear from me.” ^
This, however, was the last of his idle tlireats, and he
plunged into a fresh campaign against the Government,
reckless as a school-boy who has discovered a new method
of mischief. No printer was now willing to run the risk
of working for him, so he proceeded to set up a press of
Iiis own at No. 13 Great George Street, one John Yallowby,
on the recommendation of Dryden Leach, erecting two
presses for him at a cost of twenty-eight pounds.® In
three days the work was finished, and a couple of journey-
men printers engaged, one of whom, named Michael Curry,
had been arrested by the king’s messengers as a suspected
person on the memorable 29th of April. At first Wilkes
intended to publish an account of his prosecution written
by himself, advertising in the newspapers for subscribers,
but his admirers seemed to consider that it was foolish to
pay a guinea for information they had received already
and the contributions proved inadequate.® The Great
George Street Press, however, was soon busy with other
enterprises. An afiidavit relating to a Government loan
was the first book printed, followed immediately by Lord
Temple’s pamphlet on the seizure of papers in the form
of “ A Letter to Lords Halifax and Egremont.” *
Towards •the end of May, in an unlucky moment,
while undecided as to his next publication, Wilkes set his
foreman, Michael .Curry, to work upon the “ Essay on
Woman,” giving him strict orders to strike off only twelve
^ Add. MS. 32,948^ f. 252 ; Nollekens and His Times^ J. T. Smith
(^895), pp, 125-6.
^ Add. MS. 22,132^ f. Ill ; Guildhall MSS. 214, 2, vol. i. 214, 4,
’ St, Jainfis*s Chronicle f May 26-28, 1763.
* Add. MS, 22»X32, f, XIX ; Grenville Papers^ ii. 8x
u6 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;63
copies and to allow no one to read a word of the poem.
He was anxious to print the parody for his friends, who had
been disappointed by Kearsley’s failure to finish the volume,
while the task also had the advantage of keeping a highly
paid workman from idleness. Moreover, it was desirable
to show exactly that the verses were intended merely for
private publication, as it seemed probable that the original
manuscript as well as the imperfect proofs had been seen
by Messrs. Wood and Webb when they made their famous
seizure of papers.* The frontispiece, “ curiously engraved
on copper ” by Mr. Tringham, had been ready since the
previous October, and in a week or two about one-fourth
of the vicious poem was set up in type, twelve copies being
printed in red ink for distribution among a few intimate
friends. Since it was first composed it had been consider-
ably embellished by Wilkes himself, if not entirely revised,
and gibes at the expense of Bute and Hogarth were cleverly
interpolated.*
The title-page ran as follows :
An I Essay on Woman. ( By Pego Borewell Esq. | With
Notes by Rogerus Cunnaeus, Vigerus Mutoniatus, etc..
And I A Commentary by the Rev. Dr. Warburton. [ In
scribed to Miss Fanny Murray. | "Q? ov« cuvorepov m
Kvrepov afCKo ywcuKOi- — Hom. Od. xi. 426 | 2 QTHP
KOSMOY. 1 In recto decus. | Ex Archetypo saspe in
> On the 10th of May, thinking that copies of the poem might have
been seized by the messengers, Wilkes had inserted the 'ollowing adver-
tisement in the Public Advertiser ; " Speedily will be published, ‘ An Essay
on Woman,’ by P. C. Webb."
• Guildhall MS., " A Genuine Account of the Proceedings against Mr-
Wilkes for being the Author, &c., of the ‘ Essay on Woman,’ " p-
Add. MSS. 22,132, fi. 217 et seq. ; 30.885, ff. 150-8; The North Brih*
(W. Bingley), vol. ii., Part I, pp. 93-6 ; Journals of the House of Lofih
XXX. 416 ; Gentleman's Magazine, xxxiv. 583 ; An Essay on Wore)*
(London, 1871), pp. i.-iv. ; Notes and Queries, £nd series, iv. t, 4 ’.
loth series, ix. 442 ; xi. 493 ; Mr. Eric R. Watson in nth serjes, ix. isi'l'
143-5, i6*-3. 183-5, 203-5, 222-3. 241-2. Public Advertiser, May 10,
THE PRINTING PRESS
i;63]
II7
femoralibus Reverendissimi Georgii Stone, | Hibemiae Prim-
atis, saepius in podice Intrepidi Herois 1 Gieorgii
Sackville. | '
A prose introduction, entitled “ Advertisement by the
Editor,” followed, in which George Stone, Archbishop of
Armagh, was lampooned once more, while a sarcastic
reference to Hogarth makes it evident that Wilkes had
written his preface since his quarrel with the painter. In
a second introduction, called “ The Design,” there was a
coarse reference to Bishop Warburton and his wife.
Of the actual poem, which was a close parody of Pope's
" Essay on Man,” only ninety-four lines were set up in type,
struck off on nine pages, each containing ten or eleven
lines, together with the famous notes of the apocryphal
commentator.* Then came the other parodies, all obscene
and blasphemous, “ The Universal Prayer,” “ The Dying
Lover,” and “ Veni Creator.” Probably it was these
effusions that had amused the Great Commoner a few years
before.
On the 20th of June, contrary to the advice of Lord
Temple, who had disapproved of the printing-press from the
first, Wilkes decided to reprint The North Briton in volume
form, so the type of the “ Essay on Woman ” was distributed,
ind four new journeymen were engaged to help Curry and
Us assistant in their new work. It was a rash enterprise,
IS the most sagacious friends of the patriot hastened to
point out. So far there was no direct proof that he was
the author oi ‘‘ No. 45,” the testimony of Balfe and Kearsley
f^efore the Secretaries of State not having been given on
^ath. and it was jjrobable that Balfe and Kearsley, if Lord
Temple made it worth their while, would be willing to miti-
^ The reference to Sackville shows that the frontispiece could not have
5een written till 1759.
* Mr. Eric Watsoff has pointed out to me the probable number of lines
each page of the original edition; Notes and Queries, nth series« ix*
'^3-5.
ii8
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
gate much of their previous evidence. Undoubtedly he
was actuated mostly by vanity, boasting that " North Brikti
and Wilkes will be talked of together by posterity,” and
although he could obtain only 120 subscribers, he printed
two thousand copies of his famous periodical in two small
octavo volumes. These contained the whole forty-six
papers with a set of notes, and a third volume includ-
ing several documents relating to the prosecution was
completed in due course. On the title-page the name
of J. Williams, “ near the Mitre Tavern, Fleet Street,"
appeared as the publisher, the same Williams who had
helped Wilkes to break into Balfe’s printing-shop on the
morning of his arrest. By the 17th of July the work was
finished, and the member for Aylesbury found that he was
much out of pocket by the venture. Lord Temple, as usual,
being called upon to make up the deficiency in his banking
account.^
When he had accomplished his arduous task Wilkes’s
thoughts began to turn towards Paris, his promised visit to
his daughter having been postponed long after the appointed
time by the reprinting of The North Briton. Ever since his
release from the Tower he had revelled in the delights of
his newly-acquired fame, almost every day bringing a fresh
tribute of popular applause. Upon his first visit to his
constituency after his arrest, the pretext being a well-
advertised entertainment in honour of the king’s birthday
on the 4th of June, he received an uproarious welcome
from his fellow-townsmen, who flocked out to meet him
many miles down the London road, and hawing brougW
* " J.T.Y.” in Notes and Queries, 7th series, viii. 101, ix. I04-^'
Martin's Cat. of Privately Printed Books, p. 40 ; Addi MSS. 22,132, ff. 271-*'
35,400, ff. 83, 101, 108; 30,868, f. 40; Grenville Papers, ii. 75. Witt®
printed two other volumes at his private press, namely Recherchet ^
L'Origine du Despotisme Oriental, ouvrage postume de M. Boulanger.
John Martin in Notes and Queries, ist series, xii. 102 ; Add. MS. 30,86*1
f. 101 ; Grenville Papers, ii. 81 ; and " The ^ttle 8f Epsom," a poo®
Mr., afterwards Sir Joseph, Mawbey. Vide Add. MS. 22,132,.!. in
viUe Papers, ii. 81.
THE PRINTING PRESS
17*53]
119
him in triumph into Aylesbury, every man of them con-
tinued to drink to “ Wilkes and Liberty ” as long as he was
able to lift a tankard.^ When some of the printers who had
been arrested under the general warrant brought an action
against the messengers in the Court of Common Pleas,
financed and instigated by Lord Temple, the presence of
Wilkes appeared to give as much satisfaction to the people
as the verdict in favour of the journeymen, and he was
cheered to the echo by the crowds that were gathered
outside the Guildhall where the cause was tried.*
In the City of London, without whose support no
political cause was ever won, he had a large following, and
many influential liverymen became his most loyal supporters.
The paragraphs in the continental newspapers, endorsed by
letters from correspondents abroad, proved to him beyond
doubt that he had gained a European reputation ; while,
had he known it, he would have been prouder still to learn
that his case had aroused the deepest interest in the
American colonies, where the cry of “ Wilkes and Liberty ”
reminded local patriots that vigorous methods were re-
quired to win freedom.® Conscious of the great part that he
was playing, his courage never faltered in spite of the rumours
that he was to be expelled from the House of Commons
and prosecuted for a seditious libel in the Court of King’s
Bench. And though ostensibly he hurled his glove at the
ministers, he was aware that it was to his sovereign himself
that he offered challenge.
" I hear from all hands that the King is enraged at my
insolence, as he terms it,” he confessed in a letter to Lord
Temple. “ I regard not his frowns nor his smile. I will
ever be his faithtpl subject, never his servant. . . . Hypo-
crisy, meanness, ignorance, and insolence characterise the
* St. James’s Chronicle, June 4-7 ; Grenville Papers, ii. 59.
* Public Advertiser, July 7, 8, ii ; Chatham Correspondence, ii. 233;
i-ije of Lord Hardtdlcke, G. Harris, iii. 365.
’ Boston News Letter, June 23, Oct. 20, 1763, Feb. 16, 1764: Boston
Gasette, Feb. 20, 1764 ; cf. Grenville Papers, ii. 138.
120 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
king I obey. My independent spirit will never take a
favour from such a man. I know that I have neither the
lust of power nor of money : and if I leave my daughter
less dirty coin, 1 will leave her more honest fame. I trust,
next to her own virtue, her greatest honours will be derived
from her father.” ^
Meanwhile he had been kept under strict surveillance
by the Government, Nathan Carrington and his spies
following his movements day by day. Little by little
significant rumours with regard to the productions of his
printing-press reached the ears of the authorities. For the
sake of secrecy the first two printers had been boarded
and lodged at 13 Great George Street, but this precaution
became futile when additional workmen were required.
A traitor very soon appeared. Samuel Jennings, the last
of the four journeymen engaged to help Curry and Carey
to print The North Briton, turned informer, and before the
middle of July or thereabouts Philip Webb had learnt of
the existence of the ” Essay on Woman.” From that
moment the Treasury officials used every endeavour to
obtain a copy of the poem, offering all manner of alluring
promises to the printers, pursuing them until, by persuading
another to turn traitor, the booty had been obtained.
Naturally, the betrayers sought to excuse their treachery
by representing themselves as the victims of accident, and
the stories of all of them were full of falsehood. Jennings
himself protested that he picked up a fragment of a proof
sheet from the floor of Wilkes’s printing-room, which he
showed in perfect innocence to Thomas Farmer, who had
formerly been his fellow-workman. Farmer is said to have
laid the sheet before his overseer, Lioinel Hassall, and
Hassall, shocked at its indecency, immediately took
counsel with their employer, William Fadan, the Scottish
printer of Fleet Street. Fadan, anxious to seize the chance
of doing a service to the Government, sovtght the advice
‘ Grenville Papers, ii. 73-4.
THE PRINTING PRESS
I 2 I
1763]
of the Rev. John Kidgell, a clerical friend, who, being
chaplain to Lord March, was able to obtain access to the
authorities. Eager to possess any paper that might
strengthen the case against their enemy, the Treasury
officials sent word to the Fadan-Kidgell gang that they must
procure a copy of the whole poem, and consequently Hassall,
Farmer, and Jennings were urged to solicit Michael Curry,
Wilkes’s trusted foreman, to give them what they required.
For many weeks the man remained staunch to his employer,
resisting every bribe, assuring the tempters that he did not
possess a proof sheet of the parody, although in fact he had
printed one or two extra copies to keep for himself. Towards
the end of July, Wilkes went to Paris for a couple of months,
and hearing, soon after his return, that the ministers were
aware that he had printed the “ Essay on Woman ” at his
private press, he suspected Curry of having betrayed him.*
The man, already dissatisfied with the way his master had
treated him, was dismissed from his employment, where-
upon, in revenge, he handed over a set of revised proofs —
including the title-page, prefaces, and the unfinished poem,
together with the other three parodies — ^to the emissaries
of the Government.* Such was the story put forth by
Messrs. Curry, Farmer, Jennings and Co., and corroborated
by the authorities, who strove vainly to convince the world
that they were not guilty of the meanness of bribing a
servant to betray his master.
From the 20th of July to the 26th of September Wilkes
‘ Cf. Add. MS. 35.400, f. 124.
‘ A Genuilte and Succinct Narrative, John Kidgell ; A Full and Candid
Answer, by a Friend of Truth ; An Expostulatory Letter to the Rev. Mr.
Ktdgell; A Letter to J. Kidgell, containing a full answer to his Narrative;
3 '/ie Plain Truth, by» Thomas Farmer ; Journals of the House of Lords,
xxx, 415-22; Add. MSS. 22,132, fi. 217-93; 30,868, fif. 36, 40, 50; The
Rorth Briton (W. Bingley), vol. i.. Part I, pp. Ixxi.-ix., vol. ii., Part I,
pp. 93-6 ; Political Register, iii. 109 ; " H.G.D." in Notes and Queries,
2nd series, iv. 113; Guildhall MS. 214, 2, vol. i., vide “A Genuine
Account," &c., et flissim; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 140, 15a, 156,
9-II, 63, iii. 113-16 ; An Essay on Woman (Londem, privately printed,
*® 7 i) : Index Librorum Prohibitorum, Pisanus Fnud, pp. 198-236.
122
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,763
was absent from London, paying a visit to his daughter
in Paris. Notwithstanding his devotion to the girl, which
peeps forth in almost every incident of his life, there were
other attractions in the gay French capital that monopolised
a considerable portion of his time during these two months.
In a letter to Churchill he boasted of the " camaval ” of
gallantry that he was enjoying. The satellites of the
inspector of police noted, as was their custom, that he
sometimes took supper at Brissault’s, a rival establishment
to the celebrated H6tel du Roule, with certain dainty
lights of love such as Mile. L’Etoile and Mile. Sainte-Foix.'
There were rumours also of an amour with an opera dancer.
Yet in spite of these frailties, which were part of the man’s
nature, he passed on the whole a very innocent holiday
in the company of his thirteen-year-old Polly, indulging
her every whim, buying whatever she took a fancy for,
escorting her whither she desired. And while taking these
excursions, as he contrasted the gaiety and wealth of Paris
with the wretchedness and poverty of the provinces, he made
the startling prophecy that France was on the eve of a great
revolution.*
One notorious incident happened during the visit.
On the 15th of August, as he was leaving the Hotel de Saxe
in the Rue du Colombier, accompanied by Lord Palmerston,
a festive nobleman who was as gay a Ix)thario as himself,
he was accosted in the street by a gentleman in military
uniform.
“ Are you Mr. Wilkes ? ” demanded the stranger, but
recognising, perhaps, the Scottish accent the popular hero
made no response.
" Are you the celebrated Mr. Wilkfjs ? ” the officer
repeated, whereat the other, tickled by the compliment,
acknowledged his identity.®
^ Le Journal des Inspecteurs de M. de SartineSy pp. 307, 315.
• Add. MS. 30,878, f. 32 ; Grenville Papers^ ii. 100. .
’ European Magaeiney xxxiii. 226.
,763] THE PRINTING PRESS 123
In a burst of wrath the soldier retorted that Wilkes had
abused his country in The North Briton and must fight
him. Not wishing to be drawn into a quarrel with a stranger,
Wilkes replied with a pla5dul smile that there was no evi-
dence that he was the author of the paper, adding that the
young Scotsman was delivering judgment upon a question
that was puzzling the greatest lawyers in England. Per-
ceiving, however, that the other meant mischief, he reminded
him that gentlemen were not in the habit of squabbling in
the street, and naming his address he turned on his heel and
walked away.
At six o’clock the next morning the officer called at the
Hotel de Saxe and was shown into Wilkes’s room, a com-
fortable apartment on the ground floor. Producing a card,
he said that he was Captain John Forbes of Skellater,
a Scottish exile in the French service,^ and persisted in his
intention of fighting the man who had “ wrote against his
country.” Still refusing to regard the matter as serious,
Wilkes answered that he did write occasionally such things
as “receipts for tenants and sometimes on post-nights,”
but that he would give no account to Mr. Forbes or any
other man.
The young Scotsman repeated that they must fight
that very day, and Wilkes, seeking to find some reasonable
excuse for declining such a ridiculous combat, protested
that he was not at liberty to give satisfaction to anyone
else until he had settled his account with Lord Egremont.
Finally, he reminded Captain Forbes that under any cir-
cumstances the question of fighting ought not to be dis-
cussed by them but by their seconds.
This was exactly what the headstrong Forbes was
anxious to avoid, wishing to settle the matter in the Frendi
style, the sword-thrust following the challenge on the instant,
^ The ScoUisit Nation, ii. 234 ; Memoirs of the Reign of George III,
H. Walpole, L 223 n. ; St. James's Chronicle, Oct. 1-4, 1763. Captain
Forbes’s father had fought for the Pretender in *45.
124
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,763
knowing that the stern laws against duelling were less
severe to a sudden brawl than to a pre-arranged contest in
cold blood. So he paid another visit to the Hdtel de Saxe
later in the morning, hoping no doubt to discover his enemy
alone, instead of which he found him sitting with his friend
Goy, a merry little Frenchman. Wilkes refused to fight
unless the challenger produced a second, and Forbes, after
promising to do so, made another call a few moments after-
wards, endeavouring in vain to provoke an informal combat.
Early in the afternoon, however, a rumour of the intended
duel came to the ears of the authorities, the Englishman’s
friends taking this method of preventing the encounter,
and Wilkes, being summoned to appear before the marshals
of France, was compelled to give his parole to preserve the
peace. At the same time an order was issued for the arrest
of Captain Forbes, who, with visions of the Bastille before
his eyes, fled to England.^
When news of the affair reached Wilkes’s enemies in
London they did not scruple to accuse him of cowardice,
insinuating that he had prompted his friends to communi-
cate with the French marshals in order to put his persis-
tent antagonist under lock and key. Possibly he may have
taken this means of ridding himself of a tiresome intruder,
but as soon as he learnt that his courage had been called
in question his attitude entirely changed. During the third
week in August the Earl of Egremont died suddenly, and
Wilkes, declaring that he was now free to meet Forbes,
tried by every means in his power to get into communica-
tion with the Scotsman. Although his friends endeavoured
to convince him of the absurdity of accepting a challenge
from a casual swashbuckler with whom he had no legiti-
mate quarrel, he sent an intimation to his antagonist that he
^ Letters to and from Mr. Wilkes (1769), pp. 41-54 ; Gentleman* s
Magazine (1763), pp. 412, 424, 449 ; London Magazine, xxxii. 449,
549; Public Advertiser, Aug. 25-31, Sept. 21; Si. James's ChroniclCt
Sept. 15-17 ; Add. MS. 35,400, f, X13 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toyttbee),
V. 366.
THE PRINTING PRESS
17C3]
125
would fight him at Menin in Austrian Flanders on the 21st
of September. The duel, however, never took place. Either
Captain Forbes did not receive the message or he was
persuaded to ignore it, for he accepted a commission* in
the Portuguese army, and had sailed for Lisbon before
Wilkes had set out from Paris to meet him in the
Netherlands.^
The death of Lord Egremont — " II m’a jou 6 un vilain
tour,” was Wilkes’s comment on the event — ^not only
deprived the patriot of a bete noire for whose blood he
thirsted, but also nearly caused the dismissal of the rest
of his ministerial enemies. For the king, weary of George
Grenville and his colleagues, opened negotiations with
Pitt, endeavouring to persuade him to form a new Govern-
ment. The terms demanded by the Great Commoner,
however, were too arbitrary, and the administration con-
sequently remained unchanged. Lord Sandwich, a laborious
peer who regarded details as more essential than results,
being appointed to the vacant Secretaryship.
The new minister was an intimate of John Wilkes,
having been a fellow-member of the Beef Steak Club for
two years, and also, if rumour spoke truly, one of the Med-
menham fraternity, a good-humoured, tolerant soul and a
loyal friend. Naturally averse to treat his old acquaintance
as severely as his predecessor had done, he made overtures
to the patriot as soon as he returned from France, offering
on behalf of the Gk)vemment to forego the intended prose-
cution if Wilkes would consent to make suitable terms of
peace.* The olive branch was rejected with scorn, Wilkes
protesting that he had devoted himself to the service of the
Opposition and would accept no favours from the ministry,
' Add. MSS. 30,878, ff. 32, 34, 36 : Grenville Papers, ii. 99, 112, 124 ;
Ufe of Wilkes, J. Almon, i. 213-23 ; Public Advertiser, Sept. 22 and 23.
* Add. MS. 32,951, £. 220. Modern writers have made many absurd
■statements with Reference to Sandwich’s alleged treachery to Wilkes.
Philip Webb had completed his plans for obtaining a copy of the " Essay
on Woman ” before Sandwich became Secretary of State.
126
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1763
making it clear that as far as he was concerned the battle
would be fought out to the bitter end.
Having failed to conciliate his combative friend. Lord
Sandwich was obliged to adopt the views of his colleagues,
having no alternative, short of tendering his resignation,
but to carry out the king’s wishes with regard to the
punishment of Wilkes. Even if a sense of duty had not
impelled him to proceed with the prosecution, there was good
reason why the friendship between the two old comrades
should have cooled. For among the papers that were
seized at Great George Street, and still retained by the
solicitor of the Treasury, was a ribald lampoon at the
expense of Lord Sandwich in Wilkes’s own handwriting,
and evidently intended for publication, which satirised the
minister in a style that it was impossible to forgive.^ Written
a few months previously when the earl had been nominated
Ambassador at Madrid, and almost as unsavoury as the
" Essay on Woman,” it must have caused the new Secretary
of State intense annoyance when he discovered it among
the documents that Philip Webb submitted to him. In one
scornful paragraph Wilkes had even impugned his courage.
" It is beneath your lordship to measure swords with the
men, and we do most expressly restrain you to make all
your thrusts at the women. . . After perusing the
satire Lord Sandwich must have regarded its composition
as a most unfriendly act, and he was able to devote himself
to the task of impeaching Wilkes with an easy conscience.
• Guildhall MS. 214, r, vol. 3. “ Instructions for our trusty and
well-beloved John, Earl of Sandwich, our Ambassador Boctraordinary
and Plenipotentiary to the Most Catholic King, given at our Sublime
Court, Covent Garden/*
CHAPTER IX
THE FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR
1763
P ARLIAMENT met on Tuesday, the 15th of Novem-
ber. For many weeks the whole nation had been
looking forward to this day, as though a decisive
battle in foreign warfare was to be lost or won.
All were aware that there had been few contests in the
I history of England upon which graver issues had depended,
since the fight between the Opposition and the Ministry
I over the body of John Wilkes would decide whether the
king or Parliament was henceforth to control the destinies
I of the people. Dense crowds were gathered in the court-
yards outside the old Palace of Westminster. Members of
both Houses thronged the long corridors within, each
party having mobilised its forces for the great fight. There
was an atmosphere of unaccustomed excitement every-
where. Each face was aglow with expectation ; all hurried
to and fro with quick eager footsteps.
Long before the Speaker took his seat every bench was
filled in the chapel of St. Stephen's, where the Commons
assembled, and members were standing along its panelled
walls. Although not as notable an assembly as some of
the Parliaments that had gone before and came soon after,
it still contained the most noble figure that ever entered
those doors. He* sat amidst his colleagues of the Oppo-
sition this great WiOiam Pitt, grim and aloof, unconscious
the incessant glances that were cast upon him, a tall
gaunt man in ilhfitting clothes, and though the shadow of
pain and sickness rested upon his cheeks and he leant for-
137
128
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,763
ward in his seat with the stoop of the valetudinarian, the
gleam of his blue eyes revealed the unquenchable fire that
glowed within his breast, and the fierce curved nose and
stern mobile lips gave an impression of power and virility
to his pale face. Across the House his brother-in-law, the
Premier, bent over a sheaf of notes, a silent, bloodless man
with a hacking cough, his firm mouth and tilted nostrils
indicating the proud Grenville obstinacy, and while he had
none of Pitt’s fiery eloquence, his clear logical speeches
made him one of the most formidable of debaters.
By his side on the Treasury bench sat a plump young
Under-Secretary with a round red face and goggle eyes,
Lord North by name, in likeness almost the twin brother
of the king, who had been chosen against his will to take
a leading part in the debates on Mr. Wilkes, being a talented
orator in spite of a thick slobbering utterance, and one of
the most amiable and respected of the ministers. The
vacillating Charles Yorke was now to be seen among the
Opposition, having resigned the Attorney-Generalship so
as to be free to take the Seals when Pitt should come into
his own again, since he believed the Woolsack must revert
to him by hereditary right ; but though he had inherited a
large share of his father’s intellect, it was evident that
sloth and self-indulgence had set their seal upon his bloated
features, the lusts of the flesh preventing him from taking
rank amongst the greatest. Though gifted with inferior
parts, the gruff, heavy- jowled Sir Fletcher Norton, who was
occupying Yorke’s place among the ministers, had proved
a far more valuable henchman to the Goveipment, being
the toughest of stubborn Tories, brave, iron-cast, and
insolent, ready at any moment to fling himself into a
debate and overwhelm an opponent in a storm of vitu-
peration.
Seated among the leaders of the Opposition, the hand-
some Charles Townshend prattled gaily* to his friends,
careless and irresponsible, feeling the importance of the
,;63] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 129
occasion less than any member of the House, dismaying his
colleagues by assuring them that he “ held Wilkes in abhor-
rence ” and would not speak on his behalf, a grievous loss
to the critics of the Government, since not even the Great
Commoner had a more fertile imagination or a more eloquent
tongue. The inflexible General Conway, seeming as though
he were encased in buckskin and pipe-clay, wore a look of
grave anxiety, for he had reached a high position among
his fellow-members by his robust fluency and lofty char-
acter, and since he knew that conscience might compel him
to vote against his party, it appeared probable that the
king’s resentment would cause him to lose all that he had
gained.
A stranger in one of the galleries that ran on either
side of the chamber, supported by slender pillars, might
have detected many other well-known faces. The black
broad-shouldered man with a wild rolling eye and the
hmip upon his cheek where a bullet lay buried beneath the
flesh is Isaac Barrd, who served under Wolfe on the heights
of Abraham, an honest swashbuckler with a voice like a
bull, but a greater orator than any save Pitt and Townshend.
On the other side of the House William Dowdeswell’s
homely face and clumsy figure may be seen, the centre of a
group of earnest Whigs, a safe business-like politician with-
out guile or ostentation, whose common-sense and integrity
have raised him to the front rank. Not far away sits
William Beckford, the dictator of the city of London, a
shorvy, pretentious merchant with a hooked nose and the
bold aggressij/e eye of the plutocrat, whose smart clothes
seem ill-suited to his uncouth demeanour, but a person of
the first importance to his party, for he is the trusted
henchman of Pitt and one of the greatest magnates in the
financial world. It is easy to recognise the pleasant Scottish
features of Sir Gilbert Elliot of Minto, one of the most
powerful of ministerial orators, and the sallow melancholy
fece of Sir George Savile, an incorruptible patriot, whose
I
130 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES (1763
word is law throughout the wide county of York. There
are some notable men, too, in that assembly whose fame
has not been won in politics. The plump gentleman with
demure hps and a habit of showing the whites of his eyes
is the celebrated George Selwyn, the member for Glou-
cester, who ranks with Foote, Wilkes, and Chesterfield as a
sayer of good things ; while the tall, supercilious person
with a thin oval face and the gestures of a dancing-master
is Horace Walpole of Strawberry Hill, and although his
contemporaries regard him as an eminent connoisseur, they
would have been much startled by the idea that he would
be better known to posterity than any other man in that
assembly.
The Speaker had taken his scat, the new members had
been sworn at the table, and the clerk was about to open
the session by reading a Bill, when Wilkes sprang to his
feet, brisk and defiant, to make his complaint of breach
of privilege. At the same instant the Prime Minister rose
to deliver a message from the king, while Speaker Cust
protested feebly that nothing could be done till the Bill had
been read according to precedent. A long debate ensued,
stormy and acrimonious, lasting nearly five hours, tiU six
o’clock — ^in reality a preliminary skirmish between Govern-
ment and Opposition, to ascertain whether members still
retained their time-honoured reverence for the sacred
question of privilege. Pitt and the Whigs contended that
it ought to take precedence of everj^thing else, but the
king’s friends, who had been marshalled in overwhelming
force, vanquished their opponents on the division of 300
votes to III, which indicated that only one hundred and
eleven stalwart Commoners were prepared to do battle t®
behalf of the member for Aylesbury.^
The Prime Minister then dehvered the royal message.
‘ Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Wafpole, i. 250;
mentary History, xv. 1354-5 ; Caldwell Papers, Part II, vol. i. p. 200; W
and Times of Ralph Allen, R. E, M. Peach, pp, 191-2.
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 131
a plain unvarnished statement, explainiijg that John Wilkes
had avoided imprisonment by pleading the privilege of
Parliament and requesting the House to consider the
whole case. After “ a humble address ” had been voted,
returning thanks to his Majesty for his gracious message,
the papers which George Grenville had laid upon the table
were read aloud — “ No. 45,” and the evidence of Richard
Balfe and George Kearsley — documents that most members
know already off by heart. Lord North followed with the
motion that was to open the full-dress debate of the day,
a motion that stigmatised The North Briton, No. 45, as “ a
false, scandalous, and seditious libel, containing expressions
of the most unexampled insolence and contumely towards
His Majesty . . . tending to alienate the affections of the
people . . . and to excite them to traitorous insurrections
against His Majesty’s Government." *
During the next eight hours the House of Commons
wrangled vehemently over textual definitions, disputing
incessantly whether such epithets as “ false " and " traitor-
ous ’’ could be applied with justice to “ No. 45,” but in spite
of these banalities the debate was as memorable as any in
its annals, since it struck the key-note that was to dominate
the most eventful reign in the history of Great Britain.
All through the long evening Pitt as usual retained the
centre of the stage, throwing his whole soul into the struggle,
since he knew that the supremacy of Parliament was at
stake, and, while approving all the anathemas that had
been heaped upon The North Briton, he maintained that
the Govemiqpnt had violated the liberty of the subject and
preached a score of sermons from this text. Among the
nrinisters Norton occasionally was able to come to grips
"ith their great antagonist in rough bull-dog fashion,
heedless of punishment or where he fastened his teeth, but
^ Journals of^h^ House of Commons, xxix. 667-8 ; Parliamentary
History^ XV. 1356-9; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), v. 385; Add.
32,952, d. 349-51-
132 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,763
Lord North, with the knowledge that three hundred members
were at his command, was content to roll forth platitudes
on the subject of treason and sedition. It was nearly two
o’clock in the morning before the division was taken, when
it was resolved by 273 votes to iii that No. 45 was “ a
false, scandalous, and seditious libel,” and it was ordered
to be burnt by the Common Hangman.
Now and then during the long debate Wilkes had en-
livened the House by a pert remark, and he was permitted
also to state his complaint, making a brief, incisive speech,
describing the indignities that he had suffered at the hands
of the Government.' In his last sentence he astonished
everyone by offering to make a fair and reasonable com-
promise with his enemies, promising that if his fellow-
members would declare that he was entitled to privilege
he would consent to waive his rights and submit himself
to trial by jury. A thrilling incident took place late in the
evening before the vote was taken, when Samuel Martin,
ex-Secretary to the Treasury and M.P. for Camelford, who
had been described as ” a mean, abject, low-lived, and dirty
fellow ” in The North Briton on the previous 5th of March,
delivered a set oration denouncing his libeller. Glaring at
Wilkes and speaking in a voice that thrilled with passion,
he declared that he had been grossly abused in the infamous
paper.
" A man capable of writing in that manner,” he con-
tinued savagely, “without putting his name to it and
thereby stabbing another in the dark, is a cowardly rascal,
a villain, and a scoundrel,” and lest his intention might not
be evident, he repeated the words with greater emphasis.
A hundred eyes were turned upon Wilkes, who sat smiling
and imperturbable, wholly indifferent to the studied insult.
Any other man would have answered the affront with a
^ Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon, ii. 4-7 ; History of Late Minority ^ pp. 227-33 *
A Complete Collection of Genuine Papers (Paris, p. 5i I
Advertiser t Nov. 17, 1763; Chatham Correspondence^ ii, 261; Letters^
and from Lord Malmesbury, i. 100.
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 133
few hot words of defiance, suggesting a meeting on the
morrow. For a moment the House was amazed, and then
recalling I’affaire Forbes, most of those present began to
suspect that Wilkes must be a poltroon after all.^
While the Commons were condemning The North Briton
the Government had been conducting a fresh campaign
against their enemy in the House of Lords, using the stolen
copy of the “ Essay on Woman ” as a means of assailing
him. As usual, it was the king who was the instigator of
the attack, for he had instructed Lord Sandwich to prosecute
the author of the indecent poem as soon as he heard of its
capture.^ At first it was difficult to decide the modus
operandi, Lord Chancellor Northington, an unrepentant old
reprobate, mindful perhaps of his own unholy past, deeming
it impolitic to condemn an unpublished work for its gross-
ness and impiety, but eventually it was agreed that William
Warburton, now Bishop of Gloucester, might bring forward
a complaint, because his name was mentioned on the title-
page.® The secret had been guarded most zealously, and
when Parliament met only two or three members of the
Cabinet were aware of the new peril that awaited the
tempestuous John Wilkes.
About one o’clock in the afternoon, when the king, who
opened Parliament in person, had retired from the House
of Lords and the Commons had returned to St. Stephen’s
to commence their long debate on the subject of “ No. 45,”
Lord Sandwich revealed the surprise that he had prepared
for his fellow-peers. Assuming the pose of virtuous indig-
nation, in a voice that thrilled with pious horror, the new
Secretary of State informed the House that John Wilkes had
published an obsc^e and blasphemous poem, some passages
of which he proceeded to read aloud. In spite of their
’ Caldwell Papers, Part II, vol. i. p. ao2 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toyn-
V. 386. — «-•
’ .d Selection from the Unpublished Papers of William Warburg,
Kilvert, p'. 225.
* Grenville Papers, ii. 154.
134 life of JOHN WILKES t.763
amazement at this new specimen of ministerial craft, the
humour of the situation was not lost upon the audience,
for the orator himself was a notorious rake, whose repertoire
of ribald songs was the delight and pride of the Sublime
Society of Beef Steaks. Dashwood, the Franciscan, whis-
pered to his neighbour that it was the first time that he
had heard the devil preaching, and many other peers,
knowing that Sandwich would have chuckled over the verses
had Wilkes read them to him in private, considered that he
was guilty of an act of treachery to his old friend.
Quite unperturbed, his large heavy face more solemn
than usual, the minister plodded through his task, quoting
extracts and delivering homilies in his slow, laborious style,
and although the pious Lord Lyttelton, scandalised by the
obscenity of the poem, begged that no more should be read,
a universal cry of “ Go on ” had drowned the protest, and
Sandwich was allowed to continue his recitation to the end.
No sooner had the minister sat down than the honest, hot-
headed Warburton flung himself into the debate, bubbling
over with passion at the remembrance of the innumerable
insults he had received from Wilkes and his friends. “ The
hardiest inhabitants of hell,” roared he, “ would blush to
hear such blasphemies,” and he begged Satan’s pardon
for comparing him to the member for Aylesbury.*
The House of Lords had far less difficulty in expressing
its opinion of the Wilkes literature than the House of
Commons, two peers only, Sandys and Temple, offering any
defence for the accused man. A resolution was passed that
“ the printed paper entitled ‘ An Essay on Woman ’ . • •
was a most scandalous, obscene, and impious libel, a gross
profanation of many parts of the Holy ‘Scriptures, and a
most wicked and blasphemous attempt to ridicule and
viUfy the person of our most blessed Saviour.” Witnesses
* A Selection from the Unpublished Papers of W. Wa>^.,lon, F. Kilverti
pp. 223-3*. 281-3 : Journals of House of Lords, xxx. 415717 : Fart**'
msfdary History, xv. 1346-54 ; Memoirs of the Reign of George ///.
Walpole, i. 245-9 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), v. 387-8, 394.
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 135
were called in and examined, the two disloyal printers,
Michael Curry and Samuel Jennings being the most import-
ant ; and although Lord Temple offered a vigorous protest
against the methods used by the Government to get posses-
sion of the poem, the House was about to declare that Wilkes
was its author when Lord Mansfield suggested that before
being found guilty the criminal ought to be heard in his
defence. Accordingly, the further consideration of the
matter was adjourned until the following llmrsday/
Meanwhile the tidings of Wilkes’s new misfortune had
spread over the town, and though some of his pious friends
were shocked by his profanity, almost everyone condemned
the ministers for their meanness in bribing a servant to
steal the papers of his master. " Why do they not search
the Bishop of Gloucester’s study for heresy ? ” exclaimed
Pitt, indignantly, and popular opinion, on the whole, con-
sidered the Government was as tyrannical as the Spanish
Inquisition. Wilkes, nevertheless, was greatly perturbed
when he heard what had happened in the House of Lords.
If convicted of blasphemy he was liable to dreadful penalties,
in addition to which he might lose the support of his most
loyal followers, the rich and powerful Nonconformist classes.
Obviously, it was the intention of the Government to hold
up his character to public odium. When he walked home
from the House in the early hours of the chill November
morning a spirit of recklessness had come over him, and for
the moment it seemed to him that all was lost.®
Rising as usual at an early hour, he scribbled a note to
Mr. Martin? acknowledging that he was the author of the
lampoon in The North Briton, a note that could be answered
by a gentleman only in one way. The reply was sharp and
swift. The member for Camelford was resolved upon a
duel, having been practising sedulously at a target for
‘ Journals^f^tte House of Lords, xxx. 415-17.
* History of the Late Minority, p. 234 ; Papers of William Warbvrton,
F. Kilvert, pp. *28, 229.
136 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.703
several months in anticipation of the encounter. Springing
into a hackney-coach with a brace of pistols he drove at
once to No. 13 Great George Street, where he left a note
to inform his enemy that he would await him at the Ring
in Hyde Park. Wilkes happened to be out, calling upon
friends, but within an hour he had followed the challenger
to the appointed rendezvous, accompanied by the indis-
pensable Humphrey Cotes.
It was twelve o’clock when the two politicians stood
face to face ready for the fray. Fourteen yards of rain-
sodden turf separated them, and the gloom of a winter
morning hung over the park. The first shots were in-
effective, Wilkes’s pistol flashing in its pan, while Martin
missed his aim. Standing back to back with new weapons
they wheeled round and fired again, this time with tragic
result, for as the smoke cleared off Wilkes was seen lying
on the grass, writhing with pain. A bullet had struck him
in the centre of the body, but turned away by the buttons
of his coat and waistcoat it had passed along his side.
Believing that he had received a mortal injury the wounded
duellist, with the unselfishness of a chivalrous gentleman,
called out to his antagonist to make his escape instantly.
Unmindful, however, of his own danger Martin insisted
upon going in search of a chair, refusing to think of flight
until Wilkes had been carried off to his own home.*
It was found that his wound, though a severe one, was
not dangerous, no vital organ being injured, the button
having turned the bullet into the groin. While it was
being probed for by the surgeon, a painful opefation since
it had sunk so deep that it had to be extracted from the
back, Wilkes bore his sufferings with fortitude, repeating
many times that the cause of his injury must be kept a
secret, for Martin had behaved like a man of honour and
* Gentleman's Magazine {1763), p. 563 ; Lady’s Magazine
p. 679 ; London Magazine (1763), p. 618 ; Annual Register (1763), p. »
Public Advertiser f Nov. 18 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter ^ i. 38.
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 137
must come to no harm. On the following morning, being in
great agony, and thinking he might die, he sent back the
letter of challenge, so that there should be no written evi-
dence against his antagonist, but the next day he was much
better, and able to write to his daughter to tell her that he
hoped to be well enough to pay her a visit at Christmas.^
For nearly a fortnight he often had a relapse, being indis-
creet in his diet, with a crowd of friends always at his bed-
side, in a fever of excitement from morning until night.
There was certainly much to occupy his thoughts during
his convalescence. On the 23rd of the month the House
of Commons resumed the debate upon his delinquencies,
when it was proposed on behalf of the Government that
“ privilege of Parliament does not extend to the case of
writing and publishing seditious libels.” That neither
Lords nor Commoners could be punished for their crimes
was an outrageous doctrine, but since the demand for
reform came from a tyrannical ministry, the Opposition
strove to defeat it with all their strength. Though tor-
tured by gout, Pitt fought against the surrender as though
it would sweep away the last vestige of liberty, believing
that the most vital principle of the constitution was at
stake, supporting himself on crutches as he spoke, his
limbs swathed in flannel. Yet, while declaiming indirectly
against the persecution of the member for Aylesbury, his
speech made it clear that his friendship with the dema-
gogue had come to an end.
“He is the blasphemer of his God and the libeller of
his King,” Ite exclaimed with a gesture of scorn, words that
wounded Wilkes more sorely than any that were spoken
against him all his life.®
At the end of the debate the Government passed their
' Add. MS. 30,879, 1 . 20.
“ Parliatne^jjai^v, History , xv. 1364 ; Papers of William WarhurUm^
Kilvert, p. 232 ''Life and Times of Ralph Allen, R. E. M. Peach, p. 194 ;
^ems. of Lord Lyttelton^ R. Phillimore, p. 647. Pitt's speech was made
Xov. 24,
138 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1763
resolution by a large majority, though the strength of the
Opposition was increased to 133 votes. The king was
delighted and the country gave little sign of displeasure.
Since then, indeed, the nation has shown no desire that
individual members of the House of Commons shall enjoy
abnormal privileges. One by one the old prerogatives
have vanished. A member of Parliament no longer is
allowed to libel his fellow-creatures with impunity, or to
frank his letters at the public expense, or to run into debt
without fear of being pursued by his creditors. Still, none
of the evils prophesied by Pitt have come to pass, modem
sentiment apparently supporting the belief that the power
and prestige of a legislative assembly does not depend upon
perquisites and immunities.^
Though worsted in the House of Commons Wilkes soon
won another victory in the law courts. On the 6th of
December his action for trespass against Robert Wood, the
Under - Secretary of State, was heard before Lord Chief
Justice Pratt in the Court of Common Pleas, the minister
being condemned to pay £1000 damages for carrying out
the instructions of the general warrant. As before, the
invincible Sergeant Glynn appeared for the plaintiff, but the
judge himself was almost as vehement an advocate on the
same side, for having, like Pitt, the dread of despotism
always before his eyes, he declaimed against the warrant
as though the isolated blunder of Government officials had
been a systematic attack upon the constitution. The
verdict was hailed as a great triumph by the popular party.
A vast crowd had gathered in Westminster Hall and the
result of the trial was received with shouts of joy. In a
few moments the news had reached the sick-bed in Great
George Street. An excited mob came rushing to the
famous house vrith cries of “ Wilkes and Liberty,” and the
' On the question of Privilege, vide Memoirs of the D^e of Grafton^ Sir
Wm. Anson, p. 26 n. ; Lives of the Chancellors^ Lord^Snpbell, v.
History of England, W. E. Lecky, iii. 80 ; Constitutional History of Eng-
land, Erskine May, li. 2-5.
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 139
din of French horns, staying for more than an hour, serenad-
ing their hero and cheering for Pratt, then rushing off to
hoot and groan at Lord Halifax and George Grenville.'
Undoubtedly the clamour against general warrants was
a mere party cry, and the question in itself had little con-
stitutional significance. At other times a mere technical
informality in the arrest of a demagogue would have caused
no alarm, but the contest between the king and the oli-
garchy gave it an importance that it did not deserve.
Being a grave tactical blunder the opponents of the royal
prerogative naturally turned it to the best account in
their struggle to maintain the supremacy of Parliament.
Nevertheless, it is not improbable that Pitt and Newcastle
would have used the same methods as Halifax and Egre-
raont in order to suppress a scurrilous pamphleteer. The
arrest of Wilkes was carried out in a clumsy, arbitrary, and
vindictive manner, but though some legal formalities may
have been outraged the liberty of the subject was never
in the slightest danger. Obviously, the judicial system
was placed upon too firm a basis for any miscarriage of
justice to ensue, and Wilkes and the printers soon obtained
their compensation from the Court of Common Pleas. To-
day the matter appears of even less importance than in 1763,
since a police constable enjo)^ the same power of arbitrary
arrest as was then exercised by a Secretary of State.
The employment of the general warrant and the prose-
cution of Wilkes involve two distinct questions, the first
being merely a casual incident, the second a Government
persecution in which tyranny grew more outrageous each
time it received a check. In later days, when the law of
libel became moffe elastic, the pages of The North Briton,
quite exclusive of “ No. 45," would have brought its editor
a speedy and effective punishment ; and in spite of the pro-
vocation of'-th^ Bute regime some of the most zealous Whigs
'Howell’s State Trials, xix. ii53-€8: Public Advertiser, Dec. 8;
Court Magagine (1763), p. 597 : Annual Register (1763), P- * 45 -
140
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.763
would have rejoiced if Wilkes had been condemned by a
legal tribunal to pay a severe penalty for his numerous
slanders. Luckily for him his persecutors floundered from
one mistake into another, till he had secured the great
advantage of popular sympathy, and the wholesale lam-
pooner had become a political martyr — ^thc figurehead in
the great struggle between two political parties over the
principles of the Revolution. Still, although one may be
unable to admire the tone of The North Briton or lament
that its author was arrested, it must be conceded that he
bore himself in a stout manly fashion from first to last;
and while the issue of a general warrant may not appear
as dastardly an action as formerly, it must be acknowledged
that there was no more disgraceful example of ministerial
tyranny during the eighteenth century than the special
legislation and unfair espionage that were employed sub-
sequently by the Grenville administration to crush John
Wilkes.
On the same day that he obtained his verdict against
Robert Wood another exciting incident disturbed the tran-
quillity of the patriot’s sick-bed. About twelve o’clock at
night a Scottish officer of the Marines, named Alexander
Dun, came hammering at the door, uttering threatenings
and slaughter, the servants driving him away at last with
much difficulty. Next morning Wilkes received a note from
Darby of the print-shop telling him to be on his guard, since
his midnight visitor had been heard to vow that he would
murder him at the first opportunity. A warrant was sought
for and obtained, and when Lieutenant Dun paid another
visit to 13 Great George Street two days later he was seized
by some friends of the demagogue who Were there for the
purpose. An open penknife was found in his coat pocket,
and as the man was obviously insane he was taken into
custody. On the following day the Hous^-of' Commons
investigated the matter, and decided unanimously, that the
would-be assassin was a lunatic, much V) the disappoint-
I’MRKK HOOKI’IAIES Ol- JOHN' WIl.KES
stiinid and ttii:u{'’ni h’ Pariy. IPtll^es' books w) e sold by S llaker
.Siif/trbv's), Uavjrd. and by / ti^h jnd Sot /ti’by, June l’/(y) and
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 141
raent of all ardent Wilkites, who had hoped to discover
that Dun was an emissary of the Government, hired to
assassinate their hero. Soon afterwards the unfortunate
sailor was lodged in the King’s Bench prison, where he made
many attempts to escape, and on one occasion set fire to
liis apartment. Eventually ho was removed by his friends
to a private mad-house, but in the course of time he was
considered sane enough to receive his liberty, giving evi-
dence of his sanity soon afterwards by a ferocious attack
upon a post-boy. Nine years later he wrote a friendly
letter to Wilkes, begging him to subscribe to one of his
literary productions, but with this exception he never
troubled the patriot again.*
Although Wilkes made a rapid recovery he was in no haste
to obey the order of the House of Commons to attend “ in
his place.” The king and his ministers had a new griev-
ance against him, for when the public hangman had at-
tempted to burn “ No. 45 ” in front of the Royal Exchange
on the 3rd of December, a mob of infuriated Wilkites had
overwhelmed the constables and rescued the obnoxious
paper from the flames.^ Consequently the Government
was in no humour to grant him much consideration, and,
suspecting that he was a malingerer, they ordered Dr.
Heberden and Mr. Caesar Hawkins to visit Great George
Street and “ to observe the progress of his case.” Being
attended by his friend, Richard Brocklesby, one of the most
eminent physicians of the day, Wilkes had no need of any
further medical advice, but he was delighted at the oppor-
tunity of qjisting ridicule upon the House of Commons.
In a friendly note to Mr. Heberden he expressed his regret
^ Public Advertiser^ Dec, 12, 1762, Jan. 24, Feb. lo, 24, 1764, June 5,
^767; St. James's Chronicle, Dec. 8-10, 10-13, 20-22, 1763, Feb. 16-18,
1764; Gentleman's Magazine (1763), p. 615 (1764), p. 94; Lady's
Magazine (1764), p. 94, (1767), p. 1217 ; London Magazine (1763), p. 674,
(^ 7 ^), pp. 107, 267 ; Add. MSS. 30,867, ff. 230-41, 30,871, f. 145 ; A
Complete Collection of Genuine Papers (1767), pp. 74-94.
* Parliamentary History, xv. 1379-86 ; Public Advertiser, Dec. 5 and
1763.
142
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
that he was unable to receive him professionally, but in-
vited him to come “ to eat a bit of mutton ” with him in a
few days ; and he announced mockingly that, since his
doctors had advised him to keep quiet and avoid company,
he " was not able even to see his own wife.” Immediately
afterwards he called in Messrs. Duncan and Middleton, two
of the king’s surgeons, declaring that as the House thought
it proper that he should be watched he considered two
Scotsmen “ most proper for his spies.” *
As a matter of fact Wilkes was almost convalescent,
though certainly not strong enough to defend himself in
Parliament. The wound in his groin, seven inches long,
had scarcely healed, an operation having been necessary
since the bullet was extracted. A few days’ rest, however,
would have completed his recovery. But he had promised
to visit his daughter before the end of December, and,
hearing that she was unwell, he was prepared to run any
risk rather than break his word.® Knowing that the
Government would not allow him to leave the country, he
made his plans with the utmost caution, prevaricating to
the doctors and hiding his intentions from his solicitor.
Though Carrington and his myrmidons were still watching
his house he managed also to baffle their vigilance. Pre-
tending that he was going to spend a few days with
Humphrey Cotes at Byfleet, he left Great George Street at
eight o'clock in the morning on the 24th of December in
a chaise and four with his servant, Matthew Brown, and,
although suffering great pain from the jolting of the carriage,
he reached Dover the same night. On the following after-
noon he crossed over to Calais, having a swift but stormy
passage, lasting about two and a half hours,® and three
days later he arrived in Paris.
* Gentleman’s Magasine (1763), pp. 616-17 ; Annual Register (I 7 ® 3 )>
pp. 146-7.
2 Public Advertiser^ Dec. 28, 1763 ; Add. MSS. 30,867, f. 249; 30,000,
f. 3 ; Walpole* s Letters (Toynbee), v. 435.
Add. MSS. 30,867,11. 245, 248; 22,131,1.234; Grenville Papers, jil 1 ^ 5 -
,763] FIRST PARLIAMENTARY WAR 143
The news of this hegira caused the greatest hubbub in
the town, his enemies protesting exultantly that he was a
craven, his friends lamenting because they believed that it
was his worst policy to run away. Yet even Wilkes him-
self had not made up his mind whether he would remain
abroad or return to face his foes. In leaving London he
had acted mainly from impulse, leaving his fate for the
present in the lap of the gods. Naturally, his first motive
was to see his daughter once more, for there was a danger
that he might be separated from her by a long imprisonment.
During the next three weeks he was prepared to watch the
progress of events, Paris being a safe and convenient place
of observation. Although his combative instinct made
him anxious to return, he realised that in the event of his
expulsion from the House his creditors might prove more
dangerous enemies than the ministers. On the other
hand, with the assistance of Lord Temple, he might
manage to keep solvent, while it was not improbable that
he could defeat the Government once more in the law
courts. Thus both friends and foes were wrong in their
judgment of his motives. As often happened in his career,
he was merely marking time, trusting to luck to guide his
destinies.
CHAPTER X
AN EXILE IN PARIS
1764
E xcept for two brief clandestine visits to London
in a vain endeavour to seek a pardon, Wilkes
remained an exile from England during the next
four years. For this long banishment he had
no reason to blame his advisers. Immediately his friends
knew that he had crossed the Channel he was overwhelmed
with entreaties to return. Those best able to advise him,
like George Onslow and William Fitzherbert, the two most
zealous partisans amongst his fellow-members of Parliament,
sent word that the House of Commons could do no more
than expel him, while Earl Temple assured him that he
had nothing to fear from the House of Lords. It was the
opinion, also, of Alexander Philipps, his lawyer, that no
British jury would convict him. But his friends warned
him that if he remained abroad he would lose his popularity,
since the public could not be expected to fight the battles
of a man who had run away.^
Influenced by this unanimous advice, in which Humphrey
Cotes and his brother Heaton had joined most earnestly,
he determined to set out for London on the I3tl\ of January,
so as to arrive in time for the meeting of Parliament on the
i6th of the month.* It was a grave risk, as he knew well
enough, for should the House decide upon his expulsion it
might be difficult for him to avoid a debtor’s prison. The
wonderful good fortune that attended him at some of the
> Add. MSS. 30,868, fl. 1-27 ; 30,885, flf. 100, 104.
• Add, MS. 30,867, f. 249,
144
AN EXILE IN PARIS
1764)
145
most perilous moments in his career did not fail him at this
crisis. A genuine but an opportune relapse seized him.
Ever since his flight from London he had been much in-
disposed. The jolting of the coach and the sickness he had
suffered on the stormy sea had re-opened his wound, and
though still weak and in much pain he had plunged into
the gaities of Paris with accustomed ardour. Consequently
he grew worse, and two days before he should have left for
England he was obliged to take to his bed. It was a most
fortunate indisposition. Had he returned to London on the
13th of January he would have suffered a long imprisonment,
during which the fickle public must have lost all interest
in “ Wilkes and Liberty.” On the other hand, his exile,
although in most respects a delightful holiday, gave him
the prestige of martyrdom, and he was able to arrive in his
native land at a time of his own choosing, when he could
make a dramatic re-appearance upon the political stage.
Since even his wonderful intuition could not foresee all
these eventualities, Wilkes was greatly chagrined that he
was unable to keep his promise to his friends, having made
all arrangements to return to London on the day he had
named.i Being still resolved to plead his cause in the House
of Commons as soon as he was well enough to undertake
the journey, he wrote a letter to the Speaker explaining
that illness prevented him from obe3dng the order to attend
in his place on the 19th of January, enclosing a certificate
from two French physicians to show that he was speaking
the truth.*
The Government, prompted by the king, would consent
to no more procrastination. Knowing that the absence of
the patriot had made their task an easier one, they were
eager to avenge themselves while fortune was on their side.
^Vhen the House of Commons resumed its discussion of the
' Add. MSS. 30,867, f. 249 : 30,868, ff. 6, 21.
' Journals of the House of Commons, 121; Lifeof Wilkes,].
I "■ 41 : cf. Public Advertiser, Jan. 25, 1764 ; Add. MS. 30,868, f. 23.
K
146 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Wilkes affair the court party would allow no further
clemency to be given to their enemy. His letter was treated
with contempt ; the evidence of the surgeons was deemed
inadmissible, not being authenticated by a public notary.
In every way the ministers tried to cast ridicule upon the
story of his illness, hoping to make the country believe that
he did not return because he was afraid. Many of his
former advocates were weary of fighting his battles, thinking
that he deserved punishment and that the surrender of pri-
vilege in the case of seditious libels, though demanded by
an autocratic Government, was a reasonable innovation after
all. Some of the most influential of the Whigs had come
to the conclusion that there were better methods of checking
the despotism of the king than by using John Wilkes as a
stalking horse.
Still, though public enthusiasm had abated and the
man was not present to defend himself, a band of stalwarts,
headed by Sir George Savile and Sir William Meredith,
fought valiantly to prevent him from expulsion. At first
they were able to lead 102 followers into the division lobby,
but as the hopelessness of the struggle became apparent
the numbers dwindled rapidly away, until at two o’clock
in the morning they were reduced to 57. It was in vain
that the Opposition strove to postpone the debate. The
Government were able to defeat every motion for adjourn-
ment. After the final division, however, the end was soon
reached, and at half-past three o’clock on Friday, the 20tb
of January, it was resolved, " with scarce a negative,” that
" John Wilkes be, for his said offence, expelled,the House."'
At the next sitting a new writ was ordered for the election
of a member for the borough of Aylesbury, which submitted
to the parliamentary edict with patient humility, for five
days later, one Anthony Bacon, a Virginia merchant of
1 Journals of the House of Commons, xxix. 721-3 ; Memoirs of the
of George III. H. Walpole, i. 278 ; Letters of H, Walpole (To5mbee), v. 435 *^'
Parliamentary History, xv. 1388-93 ; Chatham Correspondence, iu * 73 ’
AN EXILE IN PARIS
1764]
147
Copthall Court, was returned without opposition.^ If
Buckinghamshire tradesmen had not forgotten the tra-
ditions of Hampden, at all events they were tired of a lord
of the manor who would not pay his bills.
Although the demagogue had vanished from the scene
the storm that he had raised still reverberated through the
hails of Westminster. After his expulsion, when the contest
ceased to have any personal relation to the Sovereign,
the Opposition made one last attempt to try a fall with the
ministry. The punishment of Wilkes had relieved the
VVliigs from a serious embarrassment, for it was now possible
to discuss general principles without reference to a “ blas-
phemer of his God and a libeller of his King.” AH of the
minority, except his personal friends, felt as though a
heavy burden had been lifted from their shoulders. Accord-
ingly they commenced a fresh attack upon the Government
with renewed confidence, choosing the subject of general
warrants as the grand issue, taking up the point of view
that as the ministerial menials had been guilty of one
Icspotic action they would continue the practice of arbi-
trary arrest for all time in spite of their unhappy experi-
mces ! It was a wise choice, since the wholesale appre-
tiension of the printers had caused widespread uneasiness,
ind hundreds of loyal citizens, who cared nothing for Wilkes
» his l^orth Briton, were beginning to fear that the liberty
3 f the subject was in danger.
It was one o’clock in the morning of Wednesday, the
15th of February, when Sir William Meredith, an advocate
every lost •cause, opened the great debate in the House
Commons, his motion stating, with clumsy tautology,
that a General Warrant ... is not warranted by law.”
^ree hours later, when the first division was taken, the
'I'inisters found to their dismay that they had gained the
victory by ten votes only, the Opposition having increased
their numbers to the formidable total of 197. On the
* St. James's ChttmicU, Jan. 26-8 ; Puhlio AioerHsw, Jan. 27, 1764,
148 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;(^
following Friday, also, when the discussion was renewed
the court party fared little better, although a special whip
had collected all their forces. Most of the great orators
had speeches to deliver on the burning question, and it was
not until half-past five o’clock in the morning that the
House divided, the Government beating their opponents
by the narrow majority of fourteen on a motion to adjourn
the debate for four months.*
Besides their constitutional importance there were
other circumstances that made these scenes memorable.
On both occasions the sitting was one of the longest on
record — the former lasting for sixteen, the latter for four-
teen hours — and on the Wednesdiiy morning the House did
not rise until after seven o’clock. Never before in living
memory had a Government been obliged to mobilise its
invalids — gouty old gentlemen wrapped in blankets, victims
of rheumatism and influenza muffled in shawls being carried
from their beds into the wintry night to save their leaders
from destruction. " The floor of the House,” said Horace
Walpole, “ looked like the pool of Bethesda.” It was on
the last evening of the great struggle that the truculent
Sir Fletcher Norton reminded his fellow-members, with
more truth than politeness, that “ a resolution of the House
of Commons ought not to influence a judge any more than
that of a drunken porter.” The debate was remarkable
also because three former members of the court party,
namely Charles Yorke, General Conway, and Lord George
Sackville, definitely threw off their allegiance and made
hostile speeches against their former colleagues. Most
memorable of all was the brilliant oration of Charles Towns-
hend, who delivered a fine panegyric upon the principles oi
the Revolution, and, following the example of Pitt in the
* Journals of the House of Commons, xjdx. 842-6 ; Parlian**^ I
History, xv. 1398-1403 ; History of England, J. Adolphus, i.
Memoirs of the Reign of George Walpole, i. 287-302; Letters <9
Walpole (Toynbee), vi. 2-14 ; Chatham Correspondence, ii. 287-9 ; ,
of the Late Minority, pp. 268-80.
.764] AN EXILE IN PARIS 149
debate upon privilege, spoke of Wilkes as though he was
beneath contempt, and repudiated him utterly in the
name of Whiggism.
When the nation received its great object-lesson in
royal despotism it was unfortunate for the Whigs that the
first victim of the young king should be a violent extremist
of dissolute habits, most prodigal and untrustworthy in
all things relating to money, who refused to be bound by
party ties or accommodate himself to party discipline.
Owing to the character of the man and the indiscretion of
much of his conduct it was impossible for most of those
who should have been his pohtical allies to sympathise
with him in his misfortunes, while it was more difficult for
them still to become the earnest champions of his cause.
Nevertheless, Wilkes had some reason to complain of in-
gratitude. At the time when the Whig party was almost
annihilated by the strategy of Bute, he had undertaken a
single-handed contest against the powerful minister, and
though his methods may have been rough and indiscreet,
he had succeeded in convincing the nation that the prin-
ciples of the Revolution were in jeopardy. Of all the
members of the Opposition he was the only one to arouse
any enthusiasm in the country. Moreover, when the
authorities turned upon him in their wrath he had amazed
the whole of Europe by the skill with which he baffled his
persecutors, damaging the Government irreparably in the
eyes of the electorate, and even making it the laughing
stock of the Continent. Since he had done the greatest
service to hts party it was natural that he should expect
to be supported with loyalty and enthusiasm, the de-
fence of his liberty and the prevention of his expulsion
t>eing made the chief object of the Whig leaders. On the
contrary, however, his pohtical associates took care to
separate his personahty from his cause, regarding the latter
^ the chief plank in their platform, but abandoning the
individual to his fate.
150 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1764
The motives of the Opposition were obvious. Had
they confined their censure of general warrants to the
particular case of John Wilkes they would have weakened
their position, since it was obvious that this method of
arrest had been chosen to meet a special circumstance, and
the same mistake in all probability would never occur
again, but by making the question a universal proposition
they were able to terrify the nation into the belief that
an oriental despotism was at hand. It was impossible
also for the party to oppose the expulsion of Wilkes, as
resolutely as it supported the motion of Sir William Mere-
dith, as at least one half of its members were determined
to have no connection with the demagogue. His disre-
spect towards the king, his innumerable lampoons, his
notorious love of gallantry, his obscene and blasphemous
conversation, his spendthrift habits and condition of bank-
ruptcy — all of which blemishes were ascribed to him and
generally believed — ^had influenced many of the most
prominent Whig politicians to shun his acquaintance. In
parliamentary influence, too, he was of no account, his
followers being the poor and voteless, incapable of changing
the result of a single election. Since his flight to France
his popularity with the mob was on the wane. Thus it
came about that the Opposition, which had been saved
from extinction by his efforts, were content to abandon
him to his fate rather than make his salvation a party
question, and the man who had kindled the fire was cast
out into the cold. From his refuge in France he had good
reason to curse the dirty game of politics. *'
On the 2ist of February, a month after he was driven
from the House of Commons, the trial of John Wilkes
took place in the Court of King’s Bench before Lo^
Chief Justice Mansfield, who, unlike his colleague of the
Conunon Pleas, cared little for Revolution principles and
nothing at all for popular applause. On the previous
day, when counsel for the Crown desired to amend ^
1764]
AN EXILE IN PARIS
151
information against the defendant by striking out the
word " Purport ” and substituting the word “ Tenor,” the
judge allowed the change to be made, since it was per-
fectly legal and did not injure the accused man, although
he foresaw no doubt that sooner or later the popular party
would raise the indignant cry — “ He has altered the Re-
cord ! ” * Next morning, shortly after nine o’clock, the two
historic trials commenced, Wilkes being first arraigned on the
charge of having reprinted and published The North Briton,
No. 45, and, secondly, for having printed and published
” An Essay on Woman.” Partisans on each side appear to
have made efforts to tamper with the juries, who, what-
ever may have been their sympathies, had no alternative,
in the face of the evidence of Curry, Balfe, and Kearsley,
but to return a verdict against the defendant on both
charges. For although his advisers denied the publication
of the indecent poem, they were compelled to agree that
“the mere fact of printing was manifest,” showing how
craftily the wily Norton had drafted his information.
Judgment was signed, but no sentence was passed, a writ
being issued for the arrest of the convicted man.*
Wilkes had made up his mind to remain abroad. No
sooner, indeed, had he realised that his expulsion was
inevitable than his eagerness to return to England began
to fade away. He believed that Lord Mansfield would
pass a terrible sentence upon him, and he feared that his
captivity would be prolonged in a debtor’s prison. He
knew that the Whigs would make little effort to save him,
and he saw that his popularity with the mob was diminish-
ing rapidly. Having continued too unwell to undertake the
•
^ The North Briton (W. Bingley, 1770), vol. ii., Part I, pp. 90-1 ; The
^Vorhs of Jeremy Bentham (1853), vi. 260 ; Howell's State Trials^ xix.
1076-7 ; The Boston Chronicle^ Sept. 5, 1768 ; History of the Late Minority ^
pp. 265-6.
Add. MSS. 22,132, £f. 120, 283; Reports of C^ses, Sir J. Burrow,
IV. 2527 ; Public Record Office, Crown Roll, King's Bench 248, Nos. 75-6 ;
Tubltc Advertiser f Feb. 22t 23, 1764.
152 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;64
journey until he was driven from the House, he lost also
his chief opportunity of making a dramatic display. The
events that followed his expulsion convinced him that it
would be folly to cross the Channel before he had ascertained
whether or not he was insolvent. As soon as it was known
that he was no longer member for Aylesbury a swarm of
creditors came flocking to Great George Street, and the
landlord put in a distraint for rent. In order to save his
disciple from immediate bankruptcy Lord Temple authorised
Heaton Wilkes to print an advertisement in the newspapers,
requesting all who had claims upon his brother to send in
their accounts to him. When the sick and harassed dema-
gogue learnt that, in addition to his other misfortunes, he
had been condemned by two London juries it was natural
that he should resolve to remain in Paris until his native
country should be more favourably disposed towards him,
watching and waiting for an opportunity of striking another
blow in the cause of John Wilkes. In his pessimistic
moments he even imagined that he had become “ an exile
for life.” 1
The adjustment of his finances, which was left to the
discretion of Humphrey Cotes, proved a long and difficult
task. Everything that could be realised had to be thrown
into the melting-pot immediately. His books, his furniture,
and as much of his plate as was not pledged already, were
sold by auction to satisfy the claims of the most rapacious
of his creditors. Sir Edward Astley took over the lease of
No. 13 Great George Street, while Sir William Lee of Hart-
well purchased the Prebendal House and the»manor of
Aylesbury for the sum of £4100, which was regarded as an
excellent price. Various other properties ip Berkshire and
Buckinghamshire were bought eventually by a certain Mr.
Kent. At first Cotes believed that an income of
could be saved from the wreck, but in giving an account of
1 Add. MSS. 30,868, ff. 24, 25, 27 ; 30,886, ff. 6-7 ; Public Adveriisff^t
Jan. 19, Jan. 23 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, ii. 49 - 54 > 57 - 64 -
1764]
AN EXILE IN PARIS
*53
his stewardship later in the year he reduced this estimate
by more than one half. The debts owing to Lord Temple,
which were afterwards struck off the balance sheet, were
an additional asset in Wilkes’s favour, and he still possessed
some small estates in East Anglia. Still, when all the
creditors were paid it is evident that his fortune could not
have exceeded the original calculation of his friend.*
The process of setting the house in order was made in-
finitely more complicated by the extravagance of Wilkes
himself, who, revelling in the unaccustomed freedom from
duns, launched out into all manner of profusion. Although
discreet enough to leave Delacour’s expensive H6tel de
Saxe in the Rue de Colombier early in February he con-
tinued to “ keep a coach,” and made no attempt to reduce
the number of his servants. In his new lodgings at the
house of one Mme. de Rolinde in the Rue St. Nicaise, he
lived quietly with his beloved Polly until his health im-
proved, but as soon as the wound had healed he plunged
once more into dissipation and conviviality.® At the same
time his daughter was learning every accomplishment
from the most celebrated masters in Paris. When the
faithful Humphrey protested against this improvidence,
Wilkes always made earnest promises of economy, in-
variably drawing upon his friend for a large sum in the
same letter. In this manner he had squandered over a
thousand pounds before the beginning of August.®
Nor was Humphrey Cotes a suitable person to be entrusted
with the management of his affairs. Though he preached
economy h» was almost as prodigal as Wilkes himself.
For many years he had been a devoted follower of Lord
Temple, living in qn atmosphere of political intrigue, always
‘ Public Advertiser, Mar. 14, April 16, 26, July 20, 1764 ; Add. MSS.
30,868, ft. 105, 108, 1 17 ; History of Buckinghamshire, George Lipscombe,
”• 43 -
* Add. MS. 30,868, ff. 34, 36 ; Notes and Queries^ 5th series, xil.
462, ■' 0."
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, ii. 39, 65, 69 ; Add. MSS. 30,868, fi. 75, lor.
154 life of JOHN WILKES [^, 6 ^
ready to interest himself in the business of his leader to
the neglect of his own. Rosy, epicurean, and convivial, he
had won the implicit confidence of a host of friends, and
his sobriquet of “ honest Humphrey ” showed their estimate
of his character, but the reputation was scarcely well
deserved, for his carelessness in money matters was hurry-
ing him fast into bankruptcy. Formerly wine merchant to
the court, he had lost the royal favour owing to his ex-
treme Whig principles. Notorious rebels such as d’Eon and
Rousseau found in him a most hospitable patron, being
welcome guests at his country house as long as they chose
to remain.^ Yet, apart from his ostentatious dabbling in
politics, he was a simple, kindly soul who loved Wilkes with
the devotion of a brother, regarding him wdth an intense
admiration, ready to make any sacrifice of time or of
money in order to serve him.
A contemporary anecdote shows the generosity of the
man. One day he laid a wager of a bottle of wine with the
impecunious Churchill that he would write two better lines
than the poet had ever composed and that he himself
would acknowledge it. The bet being accepted, the wine
merchant scribbled the following letter to his banker:—
" Pay to Mr. Charles Churchill or order the sura of £50-
and place it to the account of Humphrey Cotes.” Natur-
ally the needy author agreed that he had never written
two such powerful lines in his life.* A Latin quotation at
the expense of this generous friend was made no doubt in
the first place by Wilkes himself, causing much amusement
at the time. While going to pay a visit to Cotes’s mistress
he remarked to an acquaintance : “ Fungar vice cotis
a pun no worse than most of its kind.® “ Honest Hum-
phrey,” indeed, although a married man with several children,
was a sad prodigal in various ways.
* D'Eon de Beaumont, O. Homberg and F. Jonsselin, p. 125 ; AfwW"'*
of Rev. Dr. Truster (1806), p. 35.
* Quin's Jests, S. Bladon (1766), pp. 29-30.
* Kensingtoniana, John Wilkes; Add. MS. 30,888, f. 55.
AN EXILE IN PARIS
1764]
»55
It was not long before Wilkes became reconciled to his
position. Luckily for him Baron d’Holbach, his fellow-
student at Leyden, was now living in Paris, rich, hospitable,
and famous, whose salon was the resort of the greatest of
his contemporaries. Having always had a great affection
for his old friend, the warm-hearted little German welcomed
him with open arms, full of sympathy for his misfortunes,
full of admiration at his brave fight in the cause of liberty.
At the petits diners, for which d’Holbach was renowned —
banquets worthy of Lucullus, where “ the feast of reason
and the flow of soul” was as exquisite as the cuisine —
Wilkes was an honoured guest, courted and flattered by
the brilliant coterie of wits and philosophers that gathered
around the table of the baron. Here he made the ac-
quaintance of Diderot, a volatile genius with hatchet face
and thin wiry frame, who, chafing under the difficulties
that lay in the way of his encyclopaedia of universal know-
ledge, was ready to vie with the Englishman in denouncing
the tyranny of Governments for interfering with the freedom
of the press. Here also he met the gentle d’Alembert,
who was Diderot’s principal confrere in the wonderful new
work, equally enthusiastic in the cause of liberty and
intolerant of the existing regime. Another frequent guest
at these famous dinners, named Claude Adrian Helvetius,
became an intimate friend of the exiled patriot, and his
wife and daughters proved agreeable companions for Mary
Wilkes. Like most of those who visited the d’Holbach
salons he had been brought up in the school of Voltaire,
which taught no coherent system of political philosophy,
but regarded warfare against government as its mitier.
A reformed rake and a fermier giniral he was now at leisure
to devote himself to the study of ethics and jurisprudence,
and, being a man of fine intellect, his “ De I’Esprit ” had
made a great stir in the world of letters.
With all of these, d’Holbach, Helvetius, Diderot, and
d’Alembert, and the rest, Wilkes fotmd himself in complete
156 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;6^
S5mipathy. Being free-thinkers and agnostics, they were
in open revolt against the Catholic Church, whose dogmas
and traditions and whose stupendous power over life and
liberty the English demagogue hated as heartily as any of
them. Despising the pretensions of the noblesse, they had
taken up arms against caste and privilege, eager that merit
should obtain its own reward as readily as high birth.
Like many Frenchmen, they were enthusiastic admirers
of the British constitution, dismayed by the contrast of
the cruel despotism under which their own country lay
prone. Although none of the d’Holbach coterie would
have acknowledged that their philosophy was inspired by
the precepts of Rousseau, and would have repudiated most
of the ethics of the “ Contrat Social,” each in his separate
way was upholding the rights of mankind against the tyranny
of government as strenuously as the neurotic little Genevese,
scattering broadcast the seeds of doubt and discontent that
were to bring forth their frightful crop in due season. The
salon of d’Holbach was the cradle of the French Revolution.
To these liberal-minded Parisians the persecuted John
Wilkes was a hero and a martyr. Owing to his friendship
with their Maecenas they had watched his career with interest
ever since he had become famous, and his exposition of Whig
principles always had been in complete harmony with their
own political views. In his long and desperate contest with
his Sovereign they were wise enough to perceive that
absolutism, though for a time it might appear to triumph,
had received a most deadly blow, and they revered him as
one of the greatest of living Englishmen. Aroundfthe glitter-
ing table in the gorgeous saUe d manger a dozen of the most
brilliant tongues in France were hushed intoi, silence whenever
John Wilkes began to tell the story of his fight with his
persecutors, and as they listened, while his voice grew hoarse
with indignation and his harsh features glowed with en-
thusiasm, they could not fail to learn a lesson that must
have sunk deep into the mind of every liberal Frenchman-
,764] AN EXILE IN PARIS 157
Overjoyed to think that one resolute soul could accomphsh
so much, they saw clearly that the people of England were
beginning to clamour for greater freedom, and they were
encouraged to hope that a similar love of liberty might be
bom in their own land. It was the spirit of Wilkes that
first put faith into the hearts of the pioneers of the French
Revolution.^
A young journalist named Jean Baptiste Suard, who
edited the Gazette de France, was the exile’s principal friend
outside the d’Holbach coterie. Though his love of letters
and his sympathy vnth literary men caused him sometimes
to be suspected of being an encyclopaedist) he was a Tory
at heart and a persona grata with the French Government ;
but no one in France was more devoted to Wilkes, or re-
garded him with greater admiration in spite of their political
differences. With his happy knack of enlisting a faithful
vassal in his service the apostle of liberty soon converted
the good-natured Suard into an amateur odd-jobman, like
Dell and Humphrey Cotes before him, never scrupling to
ask a favour or entrust a commission, knowing that his
admirer would oblige him with the greatest delight.®
Yet he was a man of intense pride. When he was a
hungry literary hack Madame Geoffrin scolded him for
his haughtiness.
“ Quand on n’a pas de chemises,” she remarked, " il ne
faut pas avoir de fiertd.”
“Au contraire,” he retorted, "il faut en avoir afin
d’avoir quelque chose.”
In Madame Suard, who was the sister of the famous
printer, Charles Pancoucke, Miss Wilkes also found a sincere
friend.
I
^ There are numerous letters from famous Frenchmen scattered through
the Wilkes MSS. in the British Museum.
* Mimoires , , . de M, Suard, M. Garat, ii. 90-3 1 Nouvelle Bio-
paphie GMrale, xliv. 603-7; LeUres Jnidiies de Mile, de Lespinasse,
C. Henry, p. 64 n. ; GenilemaWs Magaiine (1818), ii. 85 ; Wilkes MSS.,
passim.
158 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.;64
Another of the patriot’s most intimate associates was
Louis Francois de Brancas, Comte de Lauraguais, a man
after his own heart, of insatiable energy, generous, and rich,
with liberal sympathies and a universal gallant. Soldier,
mechanic, scientist, and dramatic author, he dabbled with
enthusiasm in all the professions, everything by starts and
nothing long. Passionately devoted to the theatre, he
accomplished an admirable reform by prohibiting the
spectators from sitting on the stage. A sincere believer in
the efficacy of inoculation, he was sent to prison for criti-
cising a decree of the French Parliament which seemed to
disparage his favourite panacea. Intensely fond of sport,
he rode in a horse-race in public against an Irish peer, one
of the first among the old noblesse to appear as an amateur
jockey. It was seldom that he concealed himself for long
from the public gaze. Chief, however, among his claims
for notoriety was his connection with Sophie Amould, the
actress, whose wit and depravity provided the town with
a constant store of piquant tales. Although Lauraguais
loved Englishmen and English manners, it was not this
characteristic alone that attracted John Wilkes.^ With
the lively Pierre Goy, who had taken his part in the
encounter with Captain Forbes, the exiled politician also
maintained the old camaraderie, though he disapproved of
his love of the cards and dice. Of one sin at least Wilkes
was entirely innocent. At no time in his life was he a
gamester.
Many months had passed away, and the name of the
patriot was almost forgotten in England, befor# he made
an attempt to “ feed the papers with gall and vinegar
^ Conespondance Mdites du Comte de CayluSy i. 360 n. ; Correspondence
littiraire de Grimmy ii. 318, iii. 311, iv. 41, viii. 175 ; Journal du RUgne de
Louis XVy E. J. Barbier, iv. 467-8; Sophie Arnouldy E. and J. de Goo*
court, pp. 42-6, 52, 89-g6, 152, 195 ; Mems, secrets de Bachaumonty passim ;
Public Advertiser y June 26, 1771, Mar. 20, 1772, Aug. 12, 1776; MomiH
Posty Oct. 18, 1776 ; Notes and Queries, ist series, ix. 538 ; Wilkes MSS.,
passim.
AN EXILE IN PARIS
1764]
159
against the administration,” a promise given to his friends
long ago when he told them of his intention to remain in
exile. Tlie first philippic took the form of “ A Letter,”
addressed "to the Worthy Electors of the Borough of
Aylesbury,” printed on the 22nd of October as a pamphlet
in Paris, whence it was forwarded to London. A month
later it found its way into most of the English newspapers
and magazines, but the London mob had become as supine
as the disloyal constituents, and the address aroused little
enthusiasm.^ Like most of Wilkes’s political essays, it was
a terse and vigorous composition, a general apologia in
answer to the charges made against him in connection
with “ No. 45 ” and the “ Essay on Woman.” Cleverly
enumerating the various blunders of his enemies, he denied
that The North Briton was " false, scandalous, or seditious,”
protesting that it contained no " personal disrespect to the
King,” and declaring that he had been persecuted by the
Tories in revenge for his crusade against Lord Bute. With
respect to the “ ludicrous poem,” as he termed it, he made
no attempt to repudiate the authorship — ^to the great
chagrin of the cautious Heaton — merely protesting that
the parody was a harmless piece of buffoonery, written to
amuse his friends, an explanation that was regarded as
a confession that he was much more guilty than Potter.*
Perceiving that the printing of the verses was just as
heinous a crime to the religious mind as their composition,
Wilkes no doubt thought it immaterial to extenuate his
part in the division of labour. There can be little doubt
that his wag the principal share.
Meanwhile English law had done its worst by him.
On the 5th of August a proclamation had been read by the
s>heriff of Middlesex at the great door of St. Margaret’s
^ Letters of David Hume to W. Strahaviy p. 48.
“ Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 1 12-13; A Complete Collection of
Lenutnr Papers (Paris, 1767), p. 63. C/. Add. MS. 30,869, f. Ill; The
Briton (W. Bingley), vol. i., Part I, p. xlix.
i6o LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.76,
Church, Westminster, ordering him to appear at the Court
of King’s Bench, and on the ist of November sentence of
outlawry was pronounced against him, a caput lupinm
or wolf’s head, being in legal fiction placed upon his
shoulders in lieu of his own, a penalty of ostracism for all
time.^ This was a fortunate circumstance for Lord Halifax,
against whom Wilkes had brought an action of damages
for wrongful arrest, which the earl had been evading by every
device of legal chicanery for several months. Now, in' con-
sequence of the plaintiff becoming an outlaw, the proceedings
came to an end.®
On the day that Wilkes was stripped of his nationality
he was staying at Boulogne with a congenial party. Cotes
and Churchill had come from England to meet him, bringing
“ obliging messages ” from Lord Temple with promises of
financial support. The exile was now intent upon para-
doxical plans of economy, contemplating a costly tour in
Italy as an alternative to " expensive and luxurious Paris,”
and, inspired by one of his periodical fits of energy, had
persuaded himself that he had perseverance enough to write
a History of England in order to pay his debts.® The re-
union of the three friends, which began with feasts and
revelry, ended in tragedy. On the 29th of October, only
five days after his arrival in the French town, Churchill
became seriously unwell, and though the cynics attributed
the cause to " a drunken debauch ” and “ a butt of claret,”
it was soon evident that his malady was typhus fever.
Shattered by vice and intemperance, his constitution could
not battle with the disease, and a week later lie was dead.
Remaining conscious to the last, he was able to dictate a
will shortly before he died, in which he appointed Wilkes
* Public Advertiser, Aug. lo, 1764 ; Gerrlleman’ s Magaiine (i7®4l>
P- 543 : Works of' Jeremy Bentham, vii. 254 n. / Howell's State Trielb
xix. 1099.
’ The North Briton, W. Bingley (1770), vol. ii.. Part I, p. 123 :
of England, J. Adolphus, i. 136.
* Grenville Papers, ii. 454-6-
< II NKl I S t in K< Hill
''.untnii/'V \iitliani,i IhttUi m ! t ntifv I
( > >i thf /' (/ h tt( t iti/i/i < A' “ II ////-', / 'V- ( ^
.;r,4i AN EXILE IN PARIS i6i
as his literary executor, requesting him to collect and
publish a complete edition of his works.'
To the exiled demagogue the death of Charles Churchill
was a bitter grief. Although incapable, perhaps, of a life-
long friendship, since temperament and the stress of cir-
cumstances made him intolerant and self-absorbed, he was
most sincere and loyal in all his attachments while they
lasted. During the whole of their relationship the affec-
tion of the bright, volatile politician for the dull, heavy poet
had never wavered for a moment. Long and pitifully he
mourned for his late friend. “ I cannot get any continued
sleep,” he wrote to Cotes, soon after the wine merchant
had returned to England with the body of the dead man,
“ th(! idea of Churchill is ever before my eyes. A pleasing
melancholy will perhaps succeed in time, and then I shall
be fit for something. As I am there is not a more useless
animal in the world. ...” A little later he confessed, " I
begin to recover from the late cruel blow, but I believe I
shall never get quite over it. ... I have not slept two hours
” he declared in a subsequent letter. “ You know in
what restless state a man’s spirits must be who does not
sleep. Churchill is still before my eyes.” ^
A month later another of Wilkes’s friends had passed
away, dying a pauper in the Fleet prison — a fellow school-
fellow of Churchill and a poet too, Robert Lloyd by name,
one of the reckless little band that had assisted in the cam-
paign against the Government. The news of the tragedy
at Boulogne may have hastened his end, for he worshipped
liis “ dear Charles,” to whose sister he was engaged.
Although this second bereavement did not affect Wilkes so
greatly as the first, he mourned over the loss of the merry
‘ Public Advertiser, Nov. i6, 1764 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee),
'''• ^45 ; Works of T. Gray (E. Gosse), iii. 187 ; Courts of Europe, H. Swin-
Ijurne, i. 399 ; i^ifg of Cowper, R. Southey, ii. 159 ; Mims, secrets de Bachau*
ii. 1^0; Sketches and Characters, P. Thicknesse, p, 100; Works
^fC. Churchill (Aldine ed.).
* Add. MSS. 30,868, f!« 144, 149, 160,
L
i 62 life of JOHN WILKES
Welshman, and long afterwards he gave him an obituary
notice, one of his neatest pen-pictures. “ Mr. Lloyd was
an excellent scholar and an easy natural poet. His peculiar
excellence was the dressing up of an old thought in a new,
neat, and trim manner. He was contented to scramble
round the foot of Parnassus on his little Welsh pony, which
seems never to have tired.’* ^
Realising the necessity of leaving Paris, where he was
already deep in debt, Wilkes agreed at last to follow the
advice of his relatives and allow his daughter to return to
England. Arrangements were made that she should stay
with the complacent Heaton, who was living in the old house
in St. John’s Square, since her father, fearing lest her affec-
tions might be estranged, was anxious to prevent her from
being placed in the custody of her mother.
“You may go a visiting your mamma whenever you
choose it,” he told the fourteen-year-old child, “ all I say is
never lie in the same house with her.”
And Polly Wilkes, who adored her father and had not
the slightest affection for her other parent, regarded the
command as a perfectly natural one. The demagogue
brought his daughter as far as Calais, avoiding Boulogne
and its painful remembrances, and on the 5th of December
the girl set sail for Dover with a faithful French maid
named La Vallerie. Matthew Brown also accompanied
her as far as London, returning immediately to his master
with the news of her safe arrival. Wilkes waited at Calais
until his servant had come back from England, and then
hurried away to Paris, whence he set out on Christmas
day upon his journey to Italy.*
^ Poetical Works of Robert Lloyd, i. xv. ; Liirrary Anecdotes of the
Eighteenth Century, J. Nichols, ii. 331 ; The Political Register, i.
* Add. MSS. 30,868, ff. 154, 155, 156 ; 30,879, f. 28 ; Life of Wilhes,
J. Almon, ii. pp. 107, iii.
CHAPTER XI
THREE YEARS OF BANISHMENT
1764-1767
S INCE early autumn Wilkes had heard the south
calling to him. A mistress with whom he was
greatly fascinated had crossed the Alps several
weeks earlier. It was on her account, to a large
e.\tent, that he was overwhelmed by a fresh burden of debt.
For many months she had been living at his expense in
“elegant lodgings furnished in the gayest style of the
Parisians ” in the Rue Neuve des Rons Enfants, overlook-
ing the Palais Royal, with her mother and two servants.
Jewellers, who were beginning to clamour for pa5mient,
had ministered to her rapacity. Like all her kind the love
of dress was her grand passion. Naturally her chaperon
also had taken full toll of the generous admirer.
The name of the lady was Gertrude Maria Corradini,
a native of Bologna, where she was born on the 28th of
June, 1745, in the parish of San Michele de Leprosettis.*
In the year 1761, when a girl of sixteen, she had made her
debut as a dancer in the opera at Venice, but met with little
success.* As the cMre amie, however, of Mr. Udney, the
British consul, she had gained some celebrity. Two years
later, in consequence of the bankruptcy of the Englishman,
which was due in a great measure to to extravagance, she
fame to Paris, where Wilkes met her at the house of a friend
' Communicated by Signor Emilio Orioli from the State Archives,
Bologna.
Communicated by Signor Aldo Rav4 of Venice.
163
i64 life of JOHN WILKES [.764-6;
in the spring of 1764.1 On his side it was a 'case of love
at first sight, and he resolved to make her his mistress.
Hitherto, inconstancy had been the mark of all his illicit
attachments. With the exception of a favourite house-
keeper, named Catherine Smith, who bore him a son shortly
before the commencement of The North Briton, and a
“ beloved Mrs. Grosvenor,” of whom he raved in his letters
to Churchill, no woman had retained his fidelity for any
length of period.
Now, at last, he found an inamorata who held him
captive for more than a year. In his eyes the Italian cour-
tesan was the most adorable creature that he had ever beheld.
“ She was of a perfect Grecian figure,” so he described her
at a later period, " cast in the mould of the Florentine
Venus, excepting that she was rather taller. . . . Her whole
form was of the most perfect symmetry.” Long afterwards,
when writing the story of this portion of his life, he was
full of enthusiasm still for her “ matchless charms ” and
" heavenly beauties.” * With obvious coquetry she strove
to excite his passion by feigning indifference, refusing all
the first bribes that he wished to thrust upon her in order
to gain the greater rewards that might be won by pro-
crastination. Finally, having endeavoured to prove that
there was nothing mercenary in her disposition, she took
care also that the final surrender should be concealed by the
cloak of piety. A silver crucifix that she greatly prized had
been stolen during her journey to Paris. Hearing of the
loss Wilkes hastened to purchase a similar one, which he
presented to her on the next day. It was a favourable
' Winckelmann^ Carl Justi, iii. 260.
^ The original manuscript of this autobiography, in Wilkes's own
handwriting, and entitled The Life of John Wilkes^ is in the British Museum
(Add. MS. 30,865). It has been privately printed under the title, Johi^
Wilkes^ Patriot. An Unfinished Autobiography (Harrow, W. F, Taylor,
1 888). Written in a style almost as naive and outspoken as the Con*
fessions of Rousseau or the Mimoires of Casanova, it is devoted for
most part to an account of his tour in Italy and his amour with the
Corradini,
,764-67] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 165
moment to convince him of her altruism. "She was so
stnick with this mark of attention,” he wrote in his diary,
“ that the same afternoon she ceas’d to be cruel.”
Unless Wilkes had been much enchanted the amour
soon would have come to an end. For Corradini was all
nerves, and to live with her was life in a storm. “ Now
and then a tempest of passion shook her fine frame, and
for many hours left her languid and indeed almost lifeless.”
Some neurotic ailment constantly brought on a fit of sulks.
Wilkes describes, also, how he was embarrassed by another
phase in her temperament. “ The force of jealousy some-
times carried her to the most ridiculous excess. He left
her one evening ill in bed. Soon after he was gone she got
up, dress’d herself, hir’d a hackney coach, and followed him
to a French house, where her Italian servant had seen him
enter. She continued in the coach near the door till morn-
ing, when Mr. Wilkes left the company and returned to his
own house in the rue St. Nicaise. She then made many
minute enquiries how he had pass’d the preceding evening.
Knowing the jealousy of her nature, he chose only to give
general and evasive answers. Upon this she broke into
the most violent rage, then dissolv’d in tears and fell into
convulsions for two or three hours.”
At length the doctors declared that she must leave Paris
before the cold weather began. Wilkes could not accom-
pany her, having arranged to meet his friends at Boulogne,
but he promised to join her in her native city as soon as
possible. Being as infatuated as ever, in spite of her
peevishness, he spared no expense in order that she should
make the journey in comfort. " He gave her a travelling
coach, sixty louis in specie, a draft on Lyons for a thousand
livres, with silver enough to pay the posts through France.
She had, besides, the permission of drawing on him as soon
as she arrived at Bologna." It was not wonderful that
his dearest friends mistrusted his promises of retrenchment.
Immediately his daughter had found a comfortable
i 66 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.764-65
home in England there was no reason why he should brave
his creditors in Paris any longer. Travelling as fast as
the bad roads would permit, but breaking his journey at
Lyons for three days, he reached Turin in about a fortnight,'
Illness had prevented the capricious Gertrude from keeping
her promise to meet him in this city, so after a brief halt
he set out once more. Ten days later he joined her in
Bologna, where he remained for nearly two weeks, leaving
again for the south, accompanied by his mistress, on the
28th of January, 1765. In a letter to his daughter he makes
an odd confession — perhaps to disarm her suspicions in case
she heard anything to his discredit. “ I went to pay my
compliments to Mile. Corradini and dined every day at her
house while I stayed at Bologna.” **
Meanwhile little Polly Wilkes was meeting with many
humiliations in England. Uncle Heaton, though the
mildest of men with the greatest awe and reverence for his
famous brother, had firm opinions on the subject of economy,
and as soon as he cast eyes on the French maid — in his view
a most outrageous extravagance — ^he told his niece that
the woman must go away at once. So, in spite of the
tears of the servant, who was devoted to her young mistress,
and the protests of the girl, who declared that she could
not dress herself, the unlucky La Vallerie, one of the worst
of sailors, was sent back again across the Channel. Miss
Wilkes, too, was much embarrassed by the attitude of her
mother, who showed great irritation because her daughter
had not been entrusted to her care. At their first inter-
view she tried to persuade the child to live wiih her, and
poor Polly, who would rather have died than disobey her
father’s orders, had to invent all manner of 'plausible excuses.
Perceiving how matters stood Mrs. Wilkes took counsel
with her attorney, and, learning that the law was on her
side, she forcibly detained the girl when she paid her next
‘ Life of Wilkes f J. Alxnon, ii. 107-17.
* Ibid.y ii. 128.
,764-65] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 167
visit a few days later. There was a turbulent scene. Full
of tears and with a brave show of the Wilkes spirit the
indignant Polly protested that her father would never
forgive her, while the mother, equally resolute, invoked
the name of the Lord Chancellor. Finally, uncles and
lawyers were called in and a compromise arranged, by which
it was agreed that Miss Wilkes should spend half the week
at St. John’s Square and the other half at Red Lion
Court.i
Although she missed her father, being “ deprived,” as
she told him, “ of the object of all her tenderness,” the girl
soon became reconciled to her new mode of life. Even the
dingy house behind St. Sepulchre’s Church ceased to have
any terrors for her, its lethargic inmates striving to win
her affection by every means in their power. Grandmother
Meade and Mr. Sherbrooke overwhelmed her with presents,
while the lazy Mrs. Wilkes proved the most indulgent of
guardians. But it was in the old home in St. John’s Square,
where her “ dearest papa ” was bom, that her happiest days
were spent. Uncle Heaton was a kind, cheerful soul with
a thrifty bourgeois wife, who wished to be on good terms
with the stylish young niece. “ Blue-eyed Nancy ” — ^a
pretty little cousin — was a delightful playmate. Crowds
of friends and relatives hurried to pay their court to the
daughter of the famous demagogue. Her uncle Israel, the
eldest of the three brothers, a grave and stately gentleman,
who was always waiting with patient dignity for the success
that never came, often invited her to his home at Richmond,
where thete were three more young cousins to go boating
with her on the river. Almost every week, too, a tempes-
tuous grandmother Wilkes made an afternoon call, scolding
and eulogising her distinguished son in the same breath,
but a far more congenial companion all the same in her
granddaughter’s eyes than anyone else, because the girl
knew that the peppery old lady loved and admired her
* Add. MSS. 30,879, ff. 30-42.
i68 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.765
" dearest papa ” almost as much as she did herself. Young
though she was, Polly was allowed to make her ddbut at the
Clerkenwell Assembly and appear at every kind of evening
party. The people of St. John’s Square were theatre-
loving folk, and she was often taken to the play. If she
had not been a girl with a sweet and gentle nature, con-
sidering the manner of her upbringing, it would have been
impossible for her to have remained unspoilt.*
In his journey to the south Wilkes received much atten-
tion from all the fellow-countrymen whom he chanced to
meet. At Milan two jovial Irishmen — Dillon and Needham
— ^who, as gay Lotharios, were quite as famous as he, held
high revels with him ; while Mr. Thrale of Streatham and
Lord Beauchamp, the son of the English ambassador at
Paris, kept him company at Florence. In both of these
cities his letters of introduction also were well received.
‘‘ I have been caressed more than I can express during my
whole journey,” he wrote to his daughter on the i6th of
February, “ and by those in every country whose Moge
does me real honour,” * During his brief stay in the Eternal
City, where he lodged in the Piazza di Spagna, he made
the acquaintance of the celebrated Johann Winckelmann,
the superintendent of the antiquities of Rome, and the
pioneer of archaeological research. The gentle savant was
captivated by the wit and vivacity of the Englishman,
and fell into raptures over the beauty of the Corradini,
though somewhat dismayed by the extravagance of her
tastes. On Wilkes’s departure from Naples he presented
him with an antique urn of porphery, upon* which the
patriot engraved an epitaph to Charles Churchill.®
Hitherto, Wilkes had found little ei^e to admire in
* Add. MSS. 30,879, fl. 42-65.
® Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, ii. 132. Cf. “ Mann" and Manners, Df*
Doran, ii. 131 ; John Wilkes, an Unfinished Autobiography, pp. 31-2.
’ Leilres Familiires de Winckelmann, i. 155, 243, 245; Winckelmann^
Letters to His Friends, Feb. 22, 1765; Political Register, iii. 119; Add-
MSS. 30,877, fi. 37, 45 ; Public Advertiser, Oct. 7, 1765.
,765] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 169
Italy except the climate. For the food and the houses he
had nothing but abuse, and the bad roads tried his temper
sorely. Whatever enjoyment he might have found in the
beautiful country was counteracted by the discomforts of
the journey. But his most bitter antipathies were directed
against the Italians. “ The entrance into Rome,” he ad-
mitted, “ impresses an awe and veneration on a stranger.
This impression, however,” he continued, “ soon goes off
by the converse of the modem habitants.” ^ Apparently
he was never able to conquer his dislike. “ I assure you,”
he told his daughter, “ that I was never more disappointed
than in the inhabitants of Italy. I expected to see a very
clever and polite people ; on the contrary, you cannot
imagine anything more ignorant, more ill-bred, or more
coarse than they are.” *
The party reached its destination on the 26th of Febmary.
At first they stayed at Stephano’s, “ a large hotel near the
sea, beyond the King’s Palace ” ; then moved to the Villa
Pietracatella, “ about a mile from Naples, on a hill called
Vomero.” ® The situation of the house was delightful.
" The most poetical fancy cou’d scarcely form a view more
truly pittoresque. In the front to the garden was a masseria
{i-e. a vineyard, an orchard, and a corn-field all together),
the town of Naples there.under your eye, next the sea, and
in the middle of the gulf the bold island of Capri.” Here
Wilkes expected to live in peace and contentment with his
mistress and his books, tfnhappily, the task of editing
Churchill’s poems proved uncongenial, and he found it
impossible to proceed with his contemplated History of
England without documents. Soon, too, the capricious
Gertrude, who ha^ brought a mother and an uncle in her
‘ John Wilkes, an Unfinished Autobiography, p. 34.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, ii. 168.
** John Wilkes, an Unfinished Autobiography, p. 48 ; Mems. of the Colman
Family^ R. B. Peake, i. 146 ; Posthumous Letters to Francis and George
dolman, pp. 85-6. Ilie house in \?hich Wilkes stayed at Vomero has been
identified by Mrs. Hutton of Naples. Unhappily it is entirely modernised.
170 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES {.755
train, began to quarrel incessantly with the faithful Matthew
Brown.
In a little while interesting news of two old associates
reached him. John Williams, the printer, who had helped |
to break into Balfe’s workshop on the famous 30th of April,
and whose name had appeared as the publisher on the title-
page of the folio edition of The North Briton, had been
tried and sentenced to stand in the pillory for his mis-
demeanours. The punishment, however, proved a magnifi-
cent triumph for the condemned man. During the whole
time that the resolute journeyman was exposed to the popu-
lace in New Palace Yard he was cheered continuously by
an enthusiastic mob, and upon his release his admirers pre-
sented him with a purse of a hundred guineas.^ For the
first time for many months the streets of London resounded
with the cry of “ Wilkes and Liberty.”
Kearsley, too, the unfortunate printer of Ludgate Hill,
whom Wilkes could never forgive for his betrayal, had
been brought before the Court of King’s Bench to receive
sentence on the same day as his brother tradesman.*
Utterly ruined in consequence of his connection with The
North Briton, he had been obliged to fly to France during
the previous year to avoid his debts, being driven home at
last by sheer hunger, the “ patriotic ” party sternly refusing
to give him any assistance. Like Williams, he too received
his recompense, though in a different way. As a reward for
confessing that Wilkes was the author of “ No. 45 ” he was
discharged from prison, and shortly afterwards succeeded
in making a satisfactory settlement with his dlreditors, who
allowed him to set up again in business in his old premises.’
r
1 Public Advertiser, July 4 and 26, 1764, Jan. 24, Feb. 13 and I5> *7^5*
London Magazine (1765), PP- 54» 108-9.
* Wilkes's Marginalia, History of the Late Minority (3rd imp.),
Mus., pp. 341-3- ^
5 Gentleman's Magazine (1764), pp. 348,544; {1765), p, 44 »
Advertiser, Jan. 26, Feb. 9, 1764; Add. MSS. 30,868, ff, no,
London Magazine (1765), p. 109.
,765] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 171
During the early spring Wilkes was much in the society
of one of his most amusing old friends. James Boswell of
Auchinleck, a young Scottish barrister, come abroad to
please his father by learning law, and himself by studying
humanity, happened to be staying in Naples. In the stormy
days of “ No. 45 ” the pertinacious little man, who craved
for the acquaintance of every notoriety, had thrust him-
self occasionally into the demagogue’s company, and he
hastened to seize the new opportunity of repeating his
former success, forgiving all the abuse that The North Briton
had hurled at his country as readily as he tolerated the
sarcasms of Dr. Johnson. Only the most churlish could
fail to be entertained by the naive egotism of the friendly
young laird, who purred forth endless streams of self-
revelation in kitten-like abandon, wholly uneonscious of
vanity, and Wilkes was delighted to humour him to the top
of his bent. Yet one need not doubt that he was sincere
when he told Boswell that he was " the most liberal man ”
that he had ever met, " a citizen of the world, free from
the prejudices of any country.” Occasionally he would
chaff him about his lairdship, dubbing him “ my old lord
of Scotland,” and declaring that he looked “ as if he had a
thousand men at his back.” And the poor comic " citizen
of the world,” whose soul was always longing for sympathy,
would plume himself vastly at the sound of this apprecia-
tion, his plump cheeks growing red with pride from his
twinkling little eyes to his pointed chin. All through his
life Wilkes kept a soft place in his heart for James Boswell.^
Towards "^he end of May there was a great upheaval
in the nUnage at Villa Pietracatella. It happened that
the exile had gona to the island of Ischia on a visit to a
friend, and for the first time Gertrude Corradini was left
nt Vomero to her own devices. With her mother and her
*^£16 to encourage her the natural cupidity of the courtesan
Hill,
Add. MS. 30,877, f. 39. Cf. Boswell's Life of Johnson, G. Birkbeck
*• 395. ii. II : Letters of James Boswell {1908), p- y>.
172 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;63
could not withstand the temptation. Packing every article
of value upon which she could lay her hands, she fled from
the house with her companions and hurried back to her
native town as quickly as a coach and four would carry her.
Fearing, no doubt, that her protector was at the end of his
resources, she was anxious to realise all portable property
without loss of time, confident that she would always be
able to recall him to her side if it was ever worth her while.
The lady, however, made a tactical blunder, besides over-
estimating her power. Wilkes’s credit was not yet ex-
hausted, and he refused to forgive the faithless mistress.
His pride had received a grievous blow. All Italy was
aware of his liaison with the beautiful opera dancer, and
ridicule being the only thing in life that he feared he shrank
from the jeers and laughter which he knew her infidelity
would arouse. Weary of Vomero and longing to be in Paris,
he seized the first opportunity of leaving for the north.
“ A wretched French Tartan, loaded with laths, was to
sail from Naples to Marseilles.” Wilkes set out in this
vessel, accompanied by his friend. Major Ridley, on the
27th of June, and after a voyage of ten days he arrived at
Toulon.^
Geneva was his next halting-place, and here he remained
for a couple of months. His old friend. Lord Abingdon,
with whom he had also spent a joyous time in Rome, was
staying in the town, and the two paid an early visit to
Voltaire. “ I was charmed with the reception he gave
me,” Wilkes told his daughter in his next letter, " and still
more with the fine sense and exquisite wit of ‘his conversa-
tion. He put me to the blush by the many compliments
he paid me. ... I do not know when I have been so highly
entertained.” • In addition to the flattery of the sage of
* John Wilkes i an Unfinished Autobiography ^ pp. 50-6;
Familidres de Winckelmanny i. 243 ; M^moiresde Diderot^ iii. 314 ;
and Manners, ii. 134 ; Public Advertiser, July 16, 1765.
• Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, ii, 184.
1,765] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 173
; Femey the outlaw was gratified also by most joyful news
from England. George Grenville was no longer Premier,
and a Whig ministry, under the leadership of Lord Rock-
ingham, had come into office. Moreover, the new Secretary
of State was the Duke of Grafton, one of the staunch little
band who had paid a visit to Wilkes when he was a prisoner
I in the Tower. Naturally, the outlaw looked forward with
confidence to some recompense, and, hastening back to Paris,
he opened negotiations with the Government.
It was his ambition still, as it had been some years
before, to secure an ambassadorship, and he endeavoured to
persuade the new Premier not only to reverse his outlawry,
but to send him also as British Minister to Constantinople.^
The price, however, was greater than the Rockingham party
cared to pay. Its leader had always been lukewarm in
the cause of Wilkes, boasting that though “ he loved him
as a friend he did not fear him as an enemy,” and he had
no intention of jeopardising his position by asking the king
to confer any favour upon the author of “ No. 45.” Still,
it was essential to conciliate the sturdy demagogue. Owing
to the high price of com there was much poverty and distress
throughout the land, and the people were seething with
discontent. Already many dangerous riots had occurred
in London. It was obvious to the ministers that if John
Wilkes was to appear at this moment as a popular leader
the Government would be greatly embarrassed. Hitherto
the mob had been on the Whig side.
Wilkes was conscious of his strength, and, considering
his services <to the party, the claims that he made were
neither rapacious nor prompted by motives of revenge.
Honestly believing that he had been the victim of perse-
cution, he appealed to the politicians in whose service he had
suffered to clear him of the dreadful stigma of outlawry,
and to compensate him for the losses which, with his habitual
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, ii. 204, 210, 214, 232 : Add. MSS. 30,868,
8 - 198 , 199; 30.869, f, 61,
174 life of JOHN WILKES [,;65
ineptitude in finance, he imagined that he had sustsuned
wholly in consequence of his warfare with the Government.
Now that the Whigs were in power no one could reproach
him with turning renegade because he accepted a place
under the Crown. Nor could he be charged with having
deserted the cause of Liberty. Since, at the very onset of-
his negotiations with the new minister. Lord Matisfio td
himself had confirmed Pratt’s decision that general warrants
were illegal, it must have appeared to him that the great
reform for which he had fought and fallen was now attained.’
To his great chagrin Lord Rockingham gave him little
hope that his expectations would be fulfilled, nevertheless
taking care that he should be disillusioned by degrees.
William Fitzherbert of Tessington, M.P. for Derby, acted
as mediator between the exile and the ministry, for he was
an old friend of Wilkes, being a fellow-member of the Beef
Steak Club. ” Shy, sly, and dry ” was the pert Lady
Vane’s summary of his character in conversation with the
author of “ No. 45,” but everyone else regarded him as a
high-minded and benevolent gentleman.’* Being the holder
of a minor post, he was inclined to regard the matter from an
official standpoint, though acting all the while in good faith
towards Wilkes. It is certain that he did his best to persuade
his chief to deal generously with his friend.
The offer of the Rockingham Whigs proved to be one
of the most clever and crafty bribes that a ministry has
ever employed to shut the mouth of a tiresome claimant.
It was proposed to allow Wilkes an income of £1000 a year,
to be paid out of the salaries of some of the principal members
of the Government, and therefore terminable whenever they
retired from office. At first the exile, who realised that the
ministers wished to cut his claws so that lie should be power-
less to attack them, refused to accept the offer. “ It did
^ Life of Lord Mansfield^ John Holliday, pp. 141-2;
Magazine (1765), p. 535 ; London Magazine (1765), p. 595.
* Chatham Correspondence, iii. 92 ; Biog. Lit. and PoHHced Amedotes,
J. Almon, i. 6.
,765-66] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 175
not captivate his imagination," and he regarded it as
'clandestine, eleemosinary, and precarious,” with the
greatest emphasis on the last word. As he brooded over
his grievances he began to utter dark threats against the
new Government. “ It depends, however, on them," he
declared, “ whether Mr. Wilkes is their friend or their
enemy. If he starts as the latter he will lash them with
scorpion rods ... if we are not good friends on public
grounds ” — i.e. suitable provision for Mr. Wilkes — “ I am
their determined implacable enemy, ready to give the stab
when it will wound the most.” ^ One of his letters to George
Onslow, a Rockingham wire-puller, sounded like an ulti-
matum ; “ I demand from the justice of my friends full
pardon under the Great Seal for having successfully served
my country.” ®
In spite of these brave words he was in a dilemma.
Although he believed that he could overthrow the Govern-
ment he knew that he would destroy himself at the same time.
To return to England seemed to court ruin. The king,
who was his implacable enemy, would exact the direst
pains and penalties. A hundred creditors were waiting
eagerly for his reappearance, and it was certain that he would
he arrested if he were to show himself in public. His debts
in Paris were increasing day by day, and the honest
Humphrey had disappointed his expectation of fresh
dividends from his estate. Swayed by these circumstances,
and being assured by Fitzherbert that the annuity was
" only a temporary provision,” he consented at last to accept
the Rockingham bribe after struggling with some nobility
against the temptation for nearly three months.®
Among his friends there was some division of opinion
with regard to th4 wisdom of this surrender. Naturally,
* Add. MS. 30,868, f. *01.
' Add. MS. 30,868, f. S09.
’ These negotiations are fully described in Mr. Percy Fitzgei;gld’s
M/e of Wilkes, i. 295-304 ; Add. MSS. 30,868, fl. 201-20 ; 30,869, fit. 1-28 ;
j ” Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), x. 129, xi. 447.
176 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,766
Onslow and Fitzherbert approved of his action, but
Humphrey Cotes and Heaton Wilkes believed that he had
made himself an exile for life. Equally censorious was
the latest and most demonstrative of his acquaintances, a
political parson named John Home, a robust little dandy
with only one eye — ^the brightest and keenest that ever shone •
in man’s head — ^who was flaunting through the continent in
very unclerical suits of flowered silk and gold lace, the
son of a rich man under his care. On the 3rd of January,
1766, the clergyman wrote to Wilkes from Montpellier,
sounding an appropriate note of warning. “ I am afraid
. . . that by furnishing you with the means of pleasure
they intend to consign you over to dissipation.”^ Being
a shrewd judge of men and affairs, Parson Home was quite
correct, for this was exactly what the Rockingham Whigs
hoped to do, but since he was aware that no political party
can afford to practise the virtue of gratitude he did not
utter a word of rebuke against the selfishness of the ministers.
With his credit restored and a new supply of ready cash
Wilkes was able to enjoy a life of gaiety once more. A
misfortune, similar to that which had befallen him during
his amours with the Corradini, happened to him in the
spring. The beautiful Mile. Chassagne, the ex-mistress
of the Maitre des Ballets at the Opera, who had been living
with him at his new lodgings in the Rue des Saints Pte
in the character of housekeeper, followed the example of
the faithless Gertmde, and absconded ’with a large sum of
money.® Contrary, however, to the expectation of those
who wished him to remain in exile he did npt become a
slave to dissipation. Determined to return home at the first
opportunity he prepared his plans with care and foresighti
and filled the English newspapers with 'innumerable para*
graphs of self-advertisement. Early in May he judged the
' Life of Horne Took^ G. Stephens, i. 79 ; Add. MS. 30,869> 4*
* Les Rapports de Police de Marais^ Biblioth^ue Nationale^ No.
European Magaiine, xxxiii. 164.
.7«i] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 177
moment propitious. Quitting Paris in secret he landed at
Dover on the 12th of the month, the delighted townsfolk,
who recognised him instantly, welcoming him with a peal
of bells, and on the next evening he had reached London,
whore he was provided with a hiding-place in Holies Street
by his friend, Lauchlin Macleane.'
At first he was full of fight, having sufficient money to
appease any tiresome creditor who might attempt to arrest
him. Believing that he held the destinies of the Govern-
ment in the hollow of his hand his demands became outrage-
ous. A free pardon, a grant of £5000 and a pension of £1500
a year on the Irish establishment — ^these were the terms of
peace that he submitted to the ministers. Lord Rocking-
ham, a weak man as a rule, was strong on this occasion,
believing that it was safer to make an enemy of Wilkes
than an enemy of the king of England. From first to last
he declined to receive him, sending Edmund Burke and
Fitzherbert with evasive messages, and advising him to
leave the country. After striving in vain for nearly three
weeks to obtain a promise of help from the administration
Wilkes at last grew tired of the struggle, and perceiving that
he was certain to be brought up for sentence if he re-
mained any longer in England, he left London abruptly
on the 31st of May, taking his daughter back to Paris
with him.®
At the end of October of the same year he made another
attempt to procure a pardon. The Duke of Grafton was now
Prime Minister, and Wilkes was led to believe that his
former champion would be more amenable than Lord Rock-
ingham. The moment seemed favourable, also, for there
had been riots in many parts of the country owing to the
high price of provisions. Landing at Dover on the 28th of
^ Notes and Queries^ 2nd series, i. 367 ; Public Advertiser y May 14,
^766 ; Add. MS. 30,869, f. 33 ; Papers of a CritiCy C. W. Dilke, ii. 38 ;
of Goldsmith y J. Prior, i, 149.
* Anecdotes of Lord Chathamy ii. 10-16 ; Life of BurkCy J. Prior, i.
Cf, Add. MS. 30,879, ff. 101-2 ; Public Advertiser y June 3, 1766.
M
178 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i;66
October he proceeded to London, but found his former
sanctuary closed against him, since Lauchlin Macleane,
who had been appointed Under-Secretary of State to Lord
Shelburne, did not care to receive so dangerous a guest.
At first he lodged in Wigmore Street, and was then enter-’
tained by Wildman, proprietor of the Opposition Club in ‘
Albemarle Street, who was Parson Home’s brother-in-law.
On the 1st of November, from the house of his host in
Argyle buildings, he wrote a humble letter to the Duke of
Grafton entreating him to intercede with the king on his
behalf. More courageous than his predecessor, the Premier
laid the message before George the Third, who treated it
with silent contempt, and then, since Fitzherbert and
other friends of Wilkes kept pressing for an answer, the
Duke sent word to the outlaw that he must write to
Pitt, who had recently been created the Earl of Chatham,
and was, in everything but name, at the head of the
Government.'
To Wilkes the reply of the Prime Minister was con-
clusive. From the Great Commoner it was impossible for
him to ask any favour. Pitt and Temple were now bitter
enemies, and Wilkes could not afford to run the risk of
offending his patron. For "the Lord of Stowe,” though
somewhat tired of acting as banker to such an outrageous
spendthrift and a little ashamed of the friendship of such
an unmitigated rake, still wrote cordial letters, addressing
him as " most celebrated exile,” and was prepared to support
him until his pardon was obtained. It was obvious also
that the newly ennobled Lord Chatham wns more ill-
disposed towards him than before, regarding him no
doubt, since his acceptance of the Rockingham pension,
as an tmprincipled adventurer, and with both Pitt and
the king in league against him there was no hope that
the indolent Grafton could do anything to help him. 0®
the same evening that he received the Premier’s message
^ Memoirs of the Duke of Grafton ^ p. 193,
,766] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT 179
he ordered a post-chaise and set out on his return journey
to France.^
Bitterly disappointed and ablaze with anger he lost no
time in fulfilling his threat to lash the English minister
' with “ scorpion rods.” As soon as he arrived in the Rue
dcs Saints Pfires he began to compose a Letter to the Duke
of Grafton — ^the second of his great philippics — ^which was
finished on the 12th of December and soon afterwards
published in pamphlet form both in London and Paris.
Although nominally directed against the Premier it be-
laboured Lord Chatham far more lustily. Indeed no such
harmful denunciation was ever directed against the great
statesman. His character and career, both public and
private, were submitted to the most merciless dissection,
Wilkes taking pains to make it apparent how much he re-
sented the desertion of one with whom he had once been
on intimate terms, and he depicted his victim as a monster
of selfishness and ingratitude.
“ I believe,” he declared, “ that the flinty heart of Lord
Chatham has known the sweets of private friendship ... as
little as even Lord Mansfield. They are formed to be admired,
not beloved. . . . Friendship is too pure a pleasure for a mind
cankered with ambition, or the lust of power and grandeur.
Lord Chatham declared in Parliament the strongest attach-
ment to Lord Temple . , . and said he would live and die with
his noble brother. He has received obligations of the first
magnitude from that noble brother : yet what trace of grati-
tude or friendship was ever found in any part of his conduct ?
• • . I ha\^ had as warm and express declarations of regard
as could be made by this marble-hearted friend. ... He
may remember tlje compliments he paid me on two certain
' Controversial Letters of /. Wilkes, p. 6o ; Grenville Papers, iv. 1-4 ;
Chatham Correspondence, iii. 242 ; Memoirs of the Seign of George JJI, H.
Walpole, iu. 4 ; Memoirs of Duke of Grafton, p. 193 : Memoirs of Margravine
"f Anspach, ii. 190-3; The Beautiful Lady Craven, A. M. Broadley and
Melville, ii. 152-3 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 178-83 ; Public
Advertiser, Nov. 1-22, 1766.
i8o LIFE OF JOHN WILKES (,767
poems in the year 1754. If I were to take the declarations
made by himself and the late Mr. Potter d la lettre they were
more charmed with those verses after the ninty-ninth time
of reading than after the first. ... I will now submit . . .
whether there was not something particularly base and per- '
fidious in Mr. Pitt’s calling me ‘a blasphemer of my God’
for those very verses — and at a time when I was absent
and dangerously ill from an affair of honour.”
The “ scorpion rods ” of John Wilkes were as poisonous
as those of Junius.^
The letter attracted some attention in pamphlet form,
but made a far greater impression when it appeared in the
Public Advertiser and was copied by all the magazines.
Most of those who read the trenchant monograph agreed
that it did good service to the exile’s cause. Not only did
it sparkle with satire against Pitt and Grafton, but it gave
a most graphic description of Wilkes’s arrest and imprison-
ment. For the first time the British public was able to read
an account, from the pen of the victim himself, of the
ridiculous blunders made by his persecutors. It amazed
everyone to learn that Lord Halifax had evaded the law-
suit brought against him by the man he had illegally arrested
when Robert Wood had been cast in heavy damages for the
part he had taken. People began to talk and think of Wilkes
once more, and many who had almost forgotten his name
realised with self-reproach that the exiled demagogue was
an injured man, treated with cruel neglect by his ungrateful
countrymen. " Your letter to the Duke of Grafton has
done you infinite Service in the City and on thelExchange,"
wrote Heaton Wilkes to his brother on the nth of May.
1767, “ and it is deservedly spoken of the best publi-
cation that has appeared with the name of J. W.” *
About the same time another misfortune had fsdl®
upon the exile, robbing him of half the joy of his latest
^ Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon, iii, 184-218,
■ Add. MS, 30,86 q, f. 121.
,; 67 ] THREE YEARS’ BANISHMENT i8i
triumph. " Honest Humphrey/' who had administered his
affairs under power of attorney, became a bankrupt in the
spring of this year, and the sum of ^£1300 due to Wilkes
was lost in the crash.^ Poor Cotes had paid the price of
his vanity and extravagance, having neglected his business
persistently in order to make a figure in the political world,
but no one believed that he had wilfully wronged his absent
friend. The outlaw, too, never doubted the integrity of
his agent for a moment, and in spite of the calamity the
affection of the two men remained unimpaired.
The position of Wilkes was now desperate. The Rock-
ingham pension had ceased, though he received occasional
remittances from some of the ministers. Every acre of
land that he was able to sell had been put up to auction.
The income of his wife from the trust estates was greatly
in arrear, and her solicitor demanded its payment.* During
the period of his recent affluence he had exceeded his annuity.
For many months he had borne once more the expense of
supporting his daughter in Paris. A petite maison in the
Faubourg St. Germain, where lived a wicked and pretty
Mile. Dufort, was principally maintained by him.® At one
time or another almost all his friends or relatives had
furnished him with loans. Both in France and in England
he was overwhelmed with debt. None of his acquaintances
except Lord Temple could now be relied upon to assist him.
Although, with his usual optimism, he buoyed himself up
with dreams of a “ golden harvest ” from his literary work
and resolved to practise economy, he was practically at
the end of^s resources.®
Still, during his long exile fortune had been busy sowing
the seeds that wpre now ripening for him into a “ golden
harvest.” Since the conclusion of the Peace of Paris a
general rise in prices had aroused a spirit of discontent
* Add. MS. 30,869, f. 1 17.
* Add. MS. 30.869, ff. 93, 140.
• Les Rapports de Marais^ No. ii»359*
• Grenvilh Papers, iv. 15-18.
i 82 life of JOHN WILKES
amongst the labouring population of Great Britain. During
the same period the bad finance of successive budgets had
exasperated the commercial community. The young king,
who had been the idol of the people at the commencement
of his reign, was growing more unpopular day by day. ’
Having seen six ministers swept from office in less than
half a dozen years the nation had lost all faith in the capa-
city of its statesmen. Even Pitt, now that he had taken
a peerage and a pension, had ceased for the moment to be
a power in the land. Thus it was that the British public,
which loves to find a hero, was ready to welcome the
first strong man who had the courage to appeal to its
S5nnpathies.
Tlie time was propitious and the prophet was at hand.
The personality of John Wilkes, now hallowed with the
glory of martyrdom, was more magnetic than ever. Twice
in recent years he had aroused the admiration of the people
by his courage in venturing among his enemies undaunted
by the frowns of his Sovereign. Twice also in a most
excellent pamphlet he had stirred the imagination of the
great middle-classes, convincing them how much he had
done and how much he had suffered in the cause of liberty.
Everyone of his sins was forgiven him. None save his
creditors remembered his debts. No one seemed to care
whether or not he was the author of the " Essay on Woman.”
All the maledictions of his foes had failed to convince his
fellow-countrymen that he was a spendthrift, a cheat, and
a debauchee. Thousands of prosperous English citizens
remembered him only as the best friend of frdhdom that
his own generation had known. Although the people of
England were not prepared to call upon, him to come as
a liberator, it was apparent that they would not fail to rally
round his standard if he were to raise it in their midst, to
the course of five years the temper of the nation had entirely
changed, and thus it happened that fate gave Wilkes his
second great opportunity.
CHAPTER XII
THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION
1767-68
^LTHOUGH Wilkes foresaw that necessity was
driving him back to England he would have
/—■% returned home voluntarily in any case. With
his usual political sagacity he had perceived
how events were shaping themselves in his favour,
and he was prepared to submit himself to what-
ever punishment his persecutors might dare to inflict.
One thing only — a seat in Parliament — was needful
for his salvation, necessary both as a permanent pro-
tection against his creditors and a means of conducting
his mission to the people. Under the provisions of the
Septennial Act a general election was due in the spring,
and the demagogue began to look for a constituency that
might be rehed upon to elect him as its member.
In this respect there was much difference of opinion
among his friends. With characteristic vanity his own
■nclinations favoured the City of London, and as early
July he was discussing the matter with Arthur Beard-
more.i Jlost of his advisers laughed at the idea, but a
month latef^ in spite of their ridicule, he allowed the Public
Advertiser to print a paragraph, announcing on “good
authority" that ,his candidature was certain.* It was
suggested by Cotes that he should stand for Westminster,
since John Churchill, the apothecary, a brother of the poet,
enormous influence with the electors, and was one of the
^ Add. MSS. 30,869, f. 148 ; c/. ff. 152, 159, i6i,
* Public Advertiseff Aug. 26, 1767,
X83
i84 life of JOHN WILKES [,767
most virulent of Wilkites. The faithful Heaton, with
fraternal admiration, believed that “ half of the counties
or boroughs ” might be invaded successfully.* Others
suggested that Lord Temple should nominate the patriot
for “ some borough of his own.” Unfortunately Wilkes'
and his patron were not at this moment on the best of
terms. The carl had been annoyed by some references to
himself in the Grafton philippic, and became still more
incensed by the publication of the letter written to him
by Wilkes five years previously, in which the Bagshot duel
was so wittily described. For it nearly involved him in a
battle too. Lord Talbot suspecting that he had sent the
letter to the newspapers, but the culprit was the demagogue
himself, who was vain of this particular composition, although
with many evasions and no little mendacity he sought to
shift the blame upon another.* Sometimes, when it seemed
necessary in the sacred cause of “ Wilkes and Liberty,” he
did not scruple to tell a lie.
Fearing that he would be imprisoned for debt the exile
hastened his departure from Paris, leaving with his daughter
for Calais on the 22nd of November. Crossing the Channel
on the 3rd of December, he hastened to London, but having
consulted with his friends, he departed to Harwich in a
few days. Sailing to the Hague on the loth of the month,
he determined to wait in Flanders until the eve of a dis-
solution of Parliament.* Finding that he was not safe,
however, from his French creditors even here, he hurried oli
to Leyden and entered himself once more as a student of
the university, thus securing immunity from arr€st.* It was
a severe winter, and during the two months that he waited
» Add. MS. 30,869, f. 155.
* Grenville Papers^ iv. i88, 262 ; Add. MSS. 30,869, ff. 139, 140, 164*
® Controversial Letters ^ p. 40; cf. Add. MS. 30,869, f. 173. Lettep
from Wilkes dated Dec. 3 and 10, 1767, in Wilkes's MSS. sold at Sotheby s
on Aug. I, 1913*
* Add. MSS. 30,869, f. 177; 30,870, f. 6; Life of Wilkes, J. Almo**.
iii. 222.
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 185
in Holland he was able to “ scate almost every day,” finding
great delight in " so noble an exercise.” Polly had re-
mained in London on a visit to her mother, where she
"seemed very happy,” to the surprise of Under. Heaton,
who did not think she could be “ with such wreiflSfiies in the
dismal dungeon of St. Sepulchre’s.” Early in tWe new
year Wilkes set out from the Hague, and, after a short
stay at Rotterdam, continued his journey to Ostend, whence
he sailed for England, arriving in London at the beginning
of February.! Here he took refuge with his termagant
sister Mrs. Hayley, who lived in Great Alie Street, Good-
man’s Fields.
The newspapers had reported his arrival so often that
the public was becoming incredulous and his presence
caused no excitement. A little company of staunch friends
— Fitzherbert among them — ^rallied around him with offers
of assistance. By this time his mind was made up, and
nothing would deter him from his purpose. At one of their
first deliberations his advisers found him surrounded by
manuscripts, paragraphs for the Public Advertiser, papers
for Almon’s Political Register, fresh attacks all of them
against his ministerial enemies.* They told him it was not
prudent to publish such things.
" No,” retorted Wilkes cheerily, “ but what the devil
have I to do with prudence ? I owe money in France,
am an outlaw in England, hated by the King, the Parlia-
ment, and the bench of bishops. ... I must raise a dust
or starw in a gaol.”
” Well,'^hat means do you intend to pursue ? ”
" To set up for the City of London.”
“ Good God, Mr, Wilkes, where is your qualification ? ”
" General Warrants and the good nature of my fellow-
citizens.” ®
‘ Public Advertiser, Feb. 6, 1768 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii, 237.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 238.
European Magasine, xxxiii. 225.
[1768
i86 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Although his friends are said to have left him in despair,
on this occasion he had no reason to complain of their gener-
osity. The Freedom of the City was presented to him by
the Joiners’ Company, and a fund was raised to defray the
expenses of the contest. Arrangement also was made to
reserve “ several public-houses on his account,” for the
supply of free drinks to the electors. A subscription list
was opened to pacify his creditors.^
Hoping to avoid the errors of their predecessors by a
policy entirely the reverse, Grafton and his colleagues
thought it best to treat Wilkes with contempt, ignoring
his presence in London, and making no attempt to molest
him. None of the ministers believed that he had a chance
of winning his election, since he had come so late into the
field and was supported by few merchants of eminence.
The king, too, seemed to have lost his thirst for vengeance,
not even being moved to reprisals by a letter praying for
pardon that Wilkes sent by his footman to the gate of
Buckingham Palace.* So Wilkes was allowed to appear openly
in the streets, and to advertise his candidature in the news-
papers, without interference from the authorities. In his
fear of glorifying the demagogue and exasperating the people
Grafton seems to have erred as much in supineness and
neglect as Grenville and Halifax had done in excess of zeal.’
Perceiving that the Government was afraid of him,
Wilkes plunged into the contest with the greatest vigour.
On the nth of March his election address appeared, in which
special emphasis was laid upon “ the two important ques-
tions of public liberty, respecting General Watrants and
Seizure of Papers.” Four days later he was admitted to
the Freedom of the City " by redemption ” in the Company
‘ Public Advertiser, March 14, 16, and 23, 1768; Life of
J. Almon, iii. 266.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 263-5 1 LeOers of Wilkes to hU P««gX«’>
i. 62-3.
* Memoirs of Duke of Grafton, p. 194 ; Memoirs of the Reign of Geoff^
III, H. Walpole, iii. 126 ; Letters of H» Walpole, vii. 176.
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 187
of Joiners, and on the same evening a banquet was giver
in his honour by “ a great number of the nobility and
Kvery ” at the King’s Arms Tavern in Comhill.^ The news-
papers were filled with puffs and paragraphs on his behalf,
I while his supporters conducted a minute canvass throughout
the city every day. A caricature depicting him as Hercules
cleaning the Augean stable had a great sale. So impressed
was the public that his election was thought inevitable and
large wagers were laid in his favour.*
The poll opened in the Guildhall on Wednesday the
i6th of March. Six other candidates for the four seats
accompanied Wilkes on to the hustings, and though two of
them, William Beckford and Barlow Trecothick, were
popular men, the excited mob that filled the great building
had eyes and voices for ‘‘the patriot” alone. Amidst a
tempest of cheers, but cool and alert in spite of the excite-
ment of the moment, Wilkes made a brief speech, according
to custom, telling the rapturous listeners that ‘‘ this day
makes me glorious amends for the rigour of a long, unmerited
exile.” At the usual ‘‘ show of hands ” the mass of grimy
palms held up in his favour gave him a clear majority, but
a poll was demanded for the other candidates, it being evi-
dent that few of his ragged friends were electors.* At a
later date one of his followers was accused of voting twice
over, turning his coat inside out on the second occasion
a disguise.
" Impossible,” laughed Wilkes when they told him,
"none of my people has a coat to his back.”
The ^l>eniained open for seven days, Wilkes appearing
on the hustings every morning, being welcomed by the
' The North Briton, yf, Bingley, vol. i.. Part I, p. xliv. ; Public Adver-
Ostr, March 15 and 16, 1768.
* Memoirs of Sir P. Francis, Parkes and Merivale, i. 204 ; Works of
T Gray, E. Gosse, iii. 3x7 ; Journal of Lady Mary Coke, ii. 2x3 ; Georgs
1768^" *** (1882), ii. 265 ; Public Advertiser, March 15,
’ Letters of Eminent Persotts to David Hume, pp. 87-8 ; Public Advsr-
I ‘'«r, March 17, 1768.
i88
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES ti;68
largest crowds that ever had assembled in the spacious haU.
On several occasions his coach was dragged back by the mob
to his headquarters at the King’s Arms Tavern. Although
his supporters made a brave show, going to vote in noisy
batches, parading the city with horns and banners, and form-
ing processions through the streets in decorated coaches,
he was able to make few converts. Most of the " patriotic
liverymen ” had promised their votes to Beckford and Tre-
cothick long before his candidature had been amiounced,
while Lord Mayor Harley and Sir Robert Ladbroke received
the support of “ the court party.” Between Wilkes and
the former, who had officiated as sheriff years ago when the
hangman made the unsucces.sful attempt to burn The North
Briton, there was a feud of long standing. Yet, though
detested in consequence by the mob, Harley received
nearly 4000 votes and stood at the head of the poll, while
Wilkes, who remained at the bottom all through the week,
obtained only 1247.*
Never anticipating a victory, Wilkes was not in the least
disheartened. In a spirited oration from the hustings
when the numbers were announced, he attributed his defeat
to his late appearance in the field. " Ministerial influence,
assisted by private malice,” he thundered, "has been
exerted in the most arbitrary and unconstitutional manner,
and by means of the basest chicanery and oppression.”
To the delight of his audience he announced his intention
of contesting the county of Middlesex, the election for which
was to commence five days later. Outside the^puildhall
an excited mob showed its approval of JohiSny Wilkes s
audacity by a like contempt for civic dignity. An attempt
was made to storm the great door of thp building, and fot
an hour or more a fierce fight was waged between the
populace and the city constables.*
‘ The North Briton, W. Bingley, vol. i., Part I, p. xlv. ; Mentoirt^^
Rtign of George III, H. Walpole, iii. t25-8 ; Public Advertiser, March *4-
* Public Advertiser, March 24 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. a66-8-
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 189
On the next morning his election address was issued
“ to the Gentlemen, Clergy, and Freeholders of the County
of Middlesex.” Two days previously he had taken the pre-
caution of writing to Thomas Nuthall, the solicitor of the
Treasury, promising to “ present ” himself to the court of
King’s Bench “ in the beginning of the ensuing term.”
Sifpine as before the Government disdained to notice his
presence, their motto being apparently, ” Give him rope
enough.” There was no fear now that he would be troubled
by creditors, a fund being opened at a principal bank in
Lombard Street for the payment of his debts, subscriptions
to which were invited by the newspapers.^ It was an-
nounced that he owed his qualification to Lord Temple,
who gave him a small freehold estate, resolute as ever to
support “ Wilkes and Liberty ” at any cost, though the old
friendship between the two had waned considerably.® In
later years the patriot is said to have been inclined to dis-
parage the generosity of his old friend, telling the following
story of his parsimony. One of the earl’s chaplains, who
for many years had received no stipend, being at the point
of death desired a shilling to be wrapped in paper, upon
which he wrote : “ If thou would be saved, go into Lord
Temple’s pocket.”
The election of the two Knights of the Shire for the
county of Middlesex took place on Monday the 38th of
March. It had been arranged previously that the poll
should be opened at ten o’clock and closed at six, with no
previous^dding up of hands. Besides Wilkes, the previous
niembers/Gfeorge Cooke and Sir William Proctor, were also
candidates. All the arrangements of the popular party
showed the most careful supervision. Never before had an
' Public Advertiser, March 21, 23, and 24 ; The North Briton,
'V. Bingley, vol. i.. Part I, p. xlvi.
’ The Vnreformed House of Commons, E. Porritt, i. 173 ; Add. MS.
{. 37y ; cf, Pftbiic Advertiser, March i8 ; Journal of Lady Mary
^ohe, ii. 2ij . JASS. Comm., loth Report, Appendix, Part I, p. 412 ;
Memoirs of the House of Russell, J. H. Wiffen, ii. 578.
190 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES 1,76*
election been so cleverly organised. Soon after six o’clock
on the eventful morning a stream of hired coaches, decked
with blue favours — ^nearly 250 in all — was making its way
along the Acton road, conveying hundreds of excited Wilkites
towards Brentford. Each carriage had been despatched in
rotation from a particular public-house, the electors being'
informed previously by handbills and advertisements where
to find them. Before setting out, blue cockades and
“ Wilkes and Liberty ” cards had been distributed to every
passenger, whose names and addresses were entered in a
canvass book. No vehicle was permitted to go through
St. James’s Street, to avoid any personal demonstration
against the king. Forty thousand notices had been issued
on behalf of the popular candidate, urging his supporters
to keep the peace. A complete record was kept of every
doubtful voter. A small army of zealous helpers super-
intended the disposal of carriages and the distribution of
handbills. A central committee sat continuously at the
King’s Arms Tavern or the Mile-end Assembly Rooms
under the direct inspiration of Wilkes himself.* “ Register,
register, register ” had become his motto, and beyond all
doubt he was the first to realise the value of the election
agent.
Quite appropriately he was the foremost in the arena,
making his appearance on the hustings at Brentford Butts
before eight o’clock, being conveyed thither from his lodgings
at Prince’s Court in a sumptuous coach drawn by six long-
tailed horses. Fortunately for himself, Cooke laid up
with gout, but Sir William Proctor was able to appear
with Wilkes in front of the polling-booth, where he remained
during most of the day, braving the jeers^ the hisses, and the
execrations of the mob without flinching.® It must have
^ Public Advertiser, March 28, 30, and 31 ; cf. Memoir of ThofMS
Hollis, p. 393. , . j
* Public Advertiser, March 30 ; The North Briton, W. Bingley, vo** j’/ |
Part I, p, xlvii. ; Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. I
128.
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 191
been on this occasion, if ever, that the demagogue perpe-
trated one of the most impudent of his jests.
" I wonder whether there are more fools or knaves down
there,” he remarked to his opponent, pointing contemptu-
ously to the excited populace.
“ I will tell them what you say,” answered Sir William
Proctor, “ and put an end to you.”
" It is yourself who would be put an end to,” sneered
Wilkes, “for I should tell them that it was a falsehood,
and they would destroy you in the twinkling of an eye.” ^
Although the sheriffs declined to announce the result
until the next morning, it was obvious when the books were
dosed that Wilkes was at the head of the poll. All day a
mob of discontented weavers had blocked the roads and
turnpikes leading to Brentford, in order to prevent their
opponents from recording their votes, but on the whole
they had obeyed the commands of their leaders to keep the
peace. During the morning a sharp skirmish had taken
place at Hyde Park Corner, the Wilkites having been in-
censed by two silk banners inscribed “ No Blasphemer ”
and “ No French Renegade,” yet no other disturbance had
occurred.* But as the mob on its return from Brentford
poured through the west end of the town the enthusiasm
of the victors could be held in check no longer. Each house
they passed was compelled to illuminate its windows in
honour of the day. Every carriage in the street was marked
with " No. 45.” All who would not shout for " Wilkes
and Libfijly ” were beaten and insulted. One great crowd,
rushing do^ the Strand, made a furious attempt to storm
the Mansion House, burning to wreak vengeance upon the
unpopular Harley^ Another part of the mob invaded
Berkeley Square and broke every pane of glass in Lord
Bute’s stately residence. At Charing Cross the Duke of
' Statesmen of the Time of George the Third, Henry Lord Brougham,
3 fd^series, p. 187 ; Old and New London, E. Walford, i. 411.
Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), vii. 177 ; London Magtuine, xxxvii.
^^4 ; Public Advertiser, March 30 and 31, 1768.
192 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Northumberland, to save his windows, was obliged to supply
the populace with ale.^
Next morning when the poll was declared it was found
that Wilkes had received 1292 votes ; George Cooke, who was
returned with him, obtaining only 827. To the working"
classes this great victory seemed a triumph of their own, ■
As yet there was no definite desire among them to obtain
the suffrage, but since prices were rising higher and wages
were falling lower it was inevitable that the hearts of the
poor should grow more bitter against their rulers. Now,
at last, after waiting for five years, their champion had
fought and conquered in a fresh battle against the Govern-
ment. Although they could have expected little benefit for
themselves, it was sufficient to know that their oppressors
had been worsted. And in addition to the fanaticism aroused
by the spirit of discontent the sporting instinct of the people
had been stirred by the splendid courage of the demagogue,
and hundreds of well-paid artisans, who cared nothing for
his principles, perceived that “ Wilkes and Liberty ” would
afford them more amusement than cock-fighting.
On the second evening the tumult broke out afresh.
Until three o’clock in the morning the metropolis was a blaze
of light, a candle at least in each window being demanded
by the mob. Upon every door in the town “ No. 43 ” wa®
scrawled in large figures. No vehicle was allowed to pass
through the streets unless the driver wore the popular colours.
The first nobility were compelled to decorate their coach-
men and grooms with blue favours, and to cheer fqt," Wilke®
and Liberty.” 'The Austrian ambassador, moSi stately of
diplomats, was dragged from his carriage and " No. 45
chalked upon the soles of his shoes. Through every street
the boisterous crowds ebbed and flowed without ceasing,
and the cry of “ Show your lights ” was sure to assafl each
householder whose ^candles were growing dim. Many ^
* Gentleman’s Magatine (1768), p. 140; London Magatine ( 17 ®*)'
p, 224 ; Annual Register (1768), p. 86.
.768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 193
sturdy Scotsman, however, sooner than do honour to the
man who had reviled his race, preferred to have his windows
broken. Sometimes the rioters followed up a fusillade of
sticks and stones by attempting to break into the house of
those who defied them ; and the beautiful Elizabeth Gunning,
Duchess of Hamilton, was besieged by an angry multitude
that strove in vain for nearly three hours to force a way
inside. Often during the night fierce revolutionary cries
echoed through the streets, shouts of “ No King ” and “ No
regal Government ” drowning the chorus of “ Wilkes and
Liberty.” Still the authorities made no adequate display
of force, although for two days the town had been at the
mercy of a drunken rabble.*
Tliis was the last night of disturbance. For the most
part the mob had been more tempestuous than vicious, and
showed no desire to run riot after its first exhilaration had
subsided. The results, too, were less serious than had been
anticipated. Although many were terrified, few had received
any hurt. Little damage, except broken windows, had been
done to property. Although compelled to waste a month’s
supply of candles, most householders had been robbed of
nothing else. The cost of paint to restore the front doors
and coach panels that had been emblazoned with the popular
hieroglyphics was the principal item in the bill of repairs.
It was suggested with some truth that the glaziers, colour-
men, and tallow-chandlers, who had reaped a splendid
harvest, would remain loyal Wilkites to the end of their
days. The better classes, nevertheless, bitterly resented
c^eir e^{»6rience of mob rule, and the papers were filled
with letters from indignant taxpayers. Wilkes himself
used to tell a tale that showed the hatred with which the
Tories regarded ‘him at this time. One morning, while
walking down the street behind an elderly dame, he saw her
* Public Advertiser, April i, a, 5, and 6, 1768 ; Jouruat of Lady Mary
ii. 225-6 ; Letters of Eminent Persons to David Hume, pp. 88-9 ;
Works of Benjamin Franklin (1887), iv. 149 ; Memoirs of the Reign of George
III, H. Walpole, iii. 128-31 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), vii. 177-8.
N
194 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,76s
look up at one of the numerous signboards that bore his
portrait — ^for many a public-house was christened now
“ The Wilkes’s Head.”
“ Aye,” she muttered to herself savagely, “ he swings
everywhere but where he ought.” ^
A similar antipathy filled the heart of a pious and some-
what crazy old gentleman, named Alexander Cruden, who
was in the habit of taking long walks with a sponge in his
pocket, rubbing out the inscription “ No. 45 ” whenever it
met his eyes.* It must have been a tedious task, for one
man alone claimed the honour of chalking “ No. 45 ” on
every door between Temple Bar and Hyde Park Corner.*
Exulting in his triumph Wilkes assumed the attitude
of a dictator. To show that the mob was obedient to his
will he bade his committee send out patrols to prevent
further disorder. In his address to his constituents there
was a veiled threat to the authorities that he might mobilise
his rioters again in “ the glorious cause of freedom.” Now
that his power had been demonstrated he knew that his
creditors would not dare to lay a hand upon him. Beyond
all question he was the most popular man of the day, his
countrymen regarding him with the like affection that they
had once bestowed upon Pitt. They cared nothing for his
debts, his blasphemy, nor his depravities, and laughed at the
evil rumours that his enemies sought to sprCcad abroad. Once
two female Wilkites were talking of the cast in his eyes.
“ Well, if he does squint,” said the more idolatrous of
the pair, " it is no more than a gentleman ought to squint.” *
In the opinion of his followers he was without4AiShush.
To recover from the fatigue of the Middlesex election,
and to flaunt himself before the world of fashion, Wilkes
* Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, i. U2. A public-house in St. John's
Street, Clerkenwcll, bore the sign of “ Wilkes's Head" — v. Public Aivtf’
User, Jan. 21, 1769.
s Life of A. Cruden (1844), Wm. Youngman, p. viii.
* Hogarth’s Works, J. Ireland and J. Nichols, ii. 222 n.
« Letters of H. Walpole, viii. 141 ; Town and Country Magaiint, I. 7 *’
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 195
hurried away to Bath as soon as he was able to leave London.
Before his arrival the fashionable crowd was somewhat
apprehensive, but it was soon found that the alarm was
unnecessary. The patriot iirrived without a mob at his
heels, and behaved in every respect like a well-bred gentle-
man. During his brief visit society frowned upon him
severely, and Lord Chancellor Camden, who as Lord Chief
Justice Pratt had reunited Wilkes and Liberty when they
were separated by the walls of the Tower, passed him without
a nod of recognition, being a much sobered little statesman
since he had the care of the Great Seal. Possessing the
divine gift of patience in full measure, Wilkes was not in
the least disconcerted by his frigid reception. Seldom
losing his temper, however great the provocation, he could
make full allowance, in the midst of his great triumph,
for the present irritation of the fashionable world. One
morning a blustering bully, accosting him in the Pump
Room, began to chaff him in coarse, offensive personalities.
Without deigning to speak a word, Wilkes listened passively,
and then, stepping nearer to his defamer, he gazed at his
neck for a moment with a look of expectation, “ as if he
searched for Jack Ketch’s mark ” behind his left ear. Most
of the onlookers, deeming it not improbable that the fellow
would come to be hanged, thought him well punished by
the silent pleasantry.'
Returning to his modest lodgings at Prince’s Court—
where the erstwhile spendthrift was paying only two and a
lialf gumeas a week — Wilkes made his appearance before
Lord Mansfield at the court of King’s Bench on the 20th
of April, the first day of Easter term, as he had promised.
Having achieved his purpose, there was no reason for him to
postpone his surrender. Although the mob came forth once
"lore to welcome their hero, a force of soldiers, both horse
* Correspondence of David Garrick, i. 298 ; Memoirs of Sir Philip
grands, Parkes and Merivale, i. 207 ; Lives of the Chancellors, John Lord
'-ampbeU, v, 275 ; The Grenville Papers, iv. 267.
[1768
196 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
and foot, guarded the approaches to Westminster Hall, so
there was no disturbance. In a speech to the judge, which
he read from his manuscript, he pleaded that there was not
a word of disrespect towards the king in “ No. 45,” and that
having privately printed only twelve copies of the " Essay
on Woman ” for his personal friends, he could not be deemed
guilty of publishing the poem.
" Neither of the two verdicts could have been found
against me,” he continued, while his voice faltered as he
met the serene gaze of the Lord Chief Justice, " if the records
had not been materially altered without my consent.”
After explaining that the alteration of the record was
legitimate and had not prejudiced the case in any way,
Lord Mansfield amazed his audience by declaring that he
could not commit Wilkes to prison since he was not legally
before the court, the Attorney General having neglected to
bring him thither by a writ of capias ut legatum. The popular
party was jubilant. Obviously, so everyone thought, this
decision furnished another instance of the weakness of the
authorities. No one doubted for a moment that the King’s
Bench and the king’s ministers were each afraid of incurring
popular odium, hence the amusing squabble over the accep-
tance of responsibility. To Wilkes the verdict meant a
welcome lease of liberty, and although seven sheriff’s officers
were waiting for him outside the court with the requisite
capias,, ready at last, none of them dared to serve it upon
him. Proceeding to a neighbouring coffee-house he showed
himself from the window to the delighted multitude^^^nding
a joyous evening afterwards at Vauxhall Gardens,‘as though
he had not a care in the world.^
1 Add. MSS. 33,053, f. 317; 32.989, ff. 363-7 : Gentleman’s
(1768), p. 196 : Annual Register (1768), p. 96 ; Public Advertiser, April
Letters to and from Lord Malmesbury, i. 155 ; Letters of H. Walpole,
184-5 ; Howell's State Trials, xix. 1077 ; Works of Jeremy Bentiatn,
vi. 260, X. 45 : The North Briton, W. Bingley, vol. i., Part I, pp- xlvili.-l*- :
Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iii. 134-5 ; London an
the Kingdom, R. R. Sharpe, iii. 81.
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 197
After amusing himself for a week, while the Government
pursued its new policy of ignoring him altogether, Wilkes
took the opportunity of humiliating his opponents by send-
ing a letter to the sheriff’s officer, saying that he was waiting
for him to come to Prince’s Court to execute the capias id
legatum, and when the writ was served he set out immediately
for Westminster Hall with Humphrey Cotes and his brother
Heaton. It was his pose now to appear a law-abiding
citizen, desirous of submitting to the justice of his country.
Although the king had already begun to clamour for his
expulsion from Parliament, the ministers naturally preferred
to allow the law courts to decide his punishment, well
content that the Lord Chief Justice should continue to earn
his full share of unpopularity.* At Westminster a great
crowd had assembled, and the lawyers were conciliatory.
Without further delay the Attorney General signed his
fiat for a writ of error, so that the prisoner could appeal
against his outlawry, while Lord Mansfield, although com-
pelled to refuse the bail that Sergeant Glynn demanded,
went out of his way to utter the pious prayer : " God
forbid that the defendant should not be allowed the benefit
of every advantage he is entitled to by law.” In the end
Wilkes was committed to the custody of the marshal of
the King’s Bench, and set out in a hackney coach to the
prison in St. George’s Fields, Parson Home being allowed
to keep him company.*
It was about half-past six in the evening when he left
Westitynster Hall amidst the usual demonstration that
attended his progress everywhere. From the first the mob
began to close about his carriage, and before it had reached
the bridge it w^s hemmed in by a thousand lusty artisans.
Unharnessing the horses, they turned the coach round
and dragged it up the Strand and along Fleet Street to the
' Correspondence of George 111 and Lord North, 1 . 3 ; Memoirs of Lord
Rockingham, ii. 68.
’ Howell's Slate Trials, xix. 1085-93 ; Add. MS. 33,989, f. 402 ; The
North Briton, W. Bingley, vol. i., Part I, p. 1 .
[1768
198 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Three Tuns Tavern in Spitalfieids, a famous Wilkite hostelry.
Often during the journey Wilkes tried to make himself
heard above the tumult, shouting hoarsely that he was the
king’s prisoner and must obey the law ; while the mob,
greatly tickled that Jack Wilkes should ask to go to gaol,
drowned his voice with their cheers. As the carriage drew
up before the tavern door the marshal and the tipstaffs
were dragged from their seats and driven away amidst
howls of derision. Taking advantage of this diversion Wilkes
managed to force his way into the inn, and addressing the
crowd again from a window on the second floor, he entreated
them to disperse. In reply they shouted back that they
would remain on watch all the night. Some undoubtedly
kept their promise, but the demagogue easily baffled their
vigilance. Changing his clothes he left the tavern secretly
about ten o’clock, and driving off to St. George’s Fields
surrendered himself to his jailer. To the last fortune
allowed him to make a laughing stock of the Government,
for not only had he to beg for his arrest, but was obliged
to steal into prison in disguise.* It was unlucky for the
ministers that they should have made an enemy of one of
the greatest humorists of his time.
Fearing that an attempt might be made to rescue the
popular hero, the authorities had taken many precautions
to guard the King’s Bench Prison in case it should be
attacked by the mob. In a special letter of warning Lord
Weymouth, the Secretary of State, instructed the Suncy
magistrates to suppress any disorder that might^wrise in
the borough of Southwark with a firm hand, informing them
where the various regiments of soldiers were quartered
in case of need.* On the same day Viscojimt Barrington,
Secretary for War, wrote to the Lord Lieutenant im*
pressing upon him the necessity of keeping the peace.
‘ Public Advertiser, April 28 and 29 ; Gentleman’s Ma$anne (1768)1
p. 197; London Magatine (1768), p. 228; Political Register, iii* *6®’
Letters of H. Walpole (Tdynbee), vii. 187.
• Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii, 273-6,
• 763 ] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 199
Strong measures were requisite during the first two weeks
that followed the commitment of the demagogue. Dis-
turbances broke out every day in some part of the town,
and though no riot took place in the neighbourhood of the
prison a noisy restless crowd began to ebb and flow without
cciising over St. George’s Fields. On the evening after
Wilkes had reached the gaol the inhabitants of the borough
were compelled to illuminate their houses, and the multi-
tude that surged through the streets of Southwark seemed
to grow denser each night. In sore dismay the magistrates
increased the guard of soldiers every morning.*
The inevitable collision took place on the loth of May.
It was rumoured that Wilkes would be present at the open-
ing of Parliament, and some of his most ardent supporters
being anxious to carry him in triumph to Westminster, a
larger crowd than ever loitered in front of the prison.
The windows of his apartment overlooked St. George’s
Fields, and occasionally his admirers were able to catch a
glimpse of their idol. A hundred men of the 3rd Regiment
of Foot Guards, drawn up within the rails outside the
gaol, endeavoured to restrain the people as they pressed
forward in eager curiosity to gaze upon the great man.
Farly in the afternoon a soldier and a patriot came to
blows, the latter resenting the destruction of a seditious
handbill. In a moment a fusillade of sticks and stones com-
menced, and the mob made a vicious onslaught upon the
regiment. The magistrates acted with swift decision.
The Riot Act was read, and, as the shower of missiles
continued, the troops were ordered to fire upon their assail-
ants. Two volleys rang forth, and as the smoke cleared
s^way the mob was seen in full flight, leaving a dozen of
their number wounded upon the ground. Beyond the out-
s^kirts of the crowd three harmless passers-by, two men
Life of William Lord Barrington y pp. 1 13-14; Public Advertiser,
pnl 30, May 2-7 ; Gentleman's Magazine (1768), pp, 197, 242 ; AnnucU
^Sister (1768), pp. 99-100, 106-8.
200 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,;68
and a woman, lay dead, killed by stray bullets. Still
another casualty marked the tragic day. Some of the
guardsmen, who had pursued one of the ringleaders into
a small outhouse, shot a young farmer, named William
Allen, in mistake for the fugitive.^
It was one of the unavoidable conflicts between order
and disorder that burst forth occasionally when men’s
passions flame high. Soldiers are often brutal, and a
magistrate is apt to be hasty when called upon to quell a
savage mob. All England was deeply affected by the sad
tragedy. Known as “ The Massacre in St. George’s Fields,”
it cast another black cloud of unpopularity over Grafton’s
moribund administration. At the coroner’s inquest a ver-
dict of wilful murder was returned against one of the
guardsmen and a justice of the peace, and both eventually
were brought to trial. It was believed that the Government
had employed a Scottish regiment, hoping for a conflict
between the soldiers and the people. A letter of thanks
to the troops, written by Lord Barrington, found its way
from the orderly book into the newspapers, and confirmed
the popular impression that the authorities were bent upon
shedding blood.® Throughout his contest with the Crown
luck always appeared to be on the side of the agitator.
To Wilkes " the massacre ” was another splendid
advertisement. It seemed to emphasise the fact that he
was fighting for freedom against tyranny and oppression.
It encouraged the belief that the king and his ministers
were the enemies of the people. Never before bad the
demagogue stood so high in the opinion of his countrymen.
* Public Advertiser, May ii, 12, and 17, July 12, August 12, 176^;
GetUleman's Magazine (1768), pp. 242, 244, 394 ; Annual Register
pp. 61, H2, 113, 151 : London Magazine {17O8), p. 426 ; Wine and Walnuts,
\V. H. Pync, i. 22 ; Works of Benjamin Franklin (1887), iv. 165-6 ; Foies
and Queries, 1st series, ii, 273 ; Political Register, ii. 417 ; Memoirs of
William Hickey, pp. 92-3.
• Life of William Lord Barrington, pp. 117-18 ; Letters of Junius
(igio), ii. 182 ; cf. Notes and Queries, 1st series, i. 125 ; The North Brito*'
W. Bingley, vol. i., Pwt II, 498.
,;r,s] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 201
By the refusal to accept his liberty at the hands of the mob
he had converted hundreds of prosperous merchants who
had regarded him hitherto as a wicked marplot. Lord
Temple wrote praising his discretion, and promised to pay
him a visit.^ The pious Lord Lyttelton forgot his abhor-
rence of the “ Essay on Woman ” in his admiration of the
patriot’s " good behaviour." * With the rank and file his
popularity amounted to adoration. In all sorts of peculiar
shapes his picture met the eye everywhere. On a tavern
signboard, on an engraved medallion in the case of a watch,
on the lid of an enamelled snuff-box, on punch bowls,
milk jugs, ale cans, on plates and dishes, in every kind of
iantaslic colour, his hideous portrait, with the familiar
squint, might be seen grinning mockingly.® At this period
indeed there were few persons in the British Isles who
were unfamiliar with his features.
On the 8th of June he gained another triumph, the
judges of the court of King’s Bench deciding unanimously
that his outlawry should be reversed. Since the massacre
in St. George’s Fields there had been several fresh dis-
turbances, and as Lord Mansfield was much jostled by the
crowd on his way to Westminster Hall, it was often hinted
that his verdict had been influenced by fear.® In his speech,
too, he gave the impression of timidity, going out of his
way to declare that he was not affected by the threats
that had been uttered against him.® It was a masterly
oration all the same, an exhaustive criticism of an obscure
branch of law, delivered in a calm melodious voice as the
great Chief Justice leant back in his chair, while the words
nppled from his lips in a stream of sparkling eloquence.®
' Grenville Papers, iv. 279.
* A>1(1. MSS. 35,362, ff. 83-4.
^ Hook for a Rainy Day, J. T. Smith (1905). p. 13.
Life of Henry Grattan, iii. 26-7 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee),
^11. I(J2.
® Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iii. 15 1-2.
^Vorks of Jeremy Bentham, x. 45-^.
202
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Still the most amazing part of the judgment was the ground
upon which his lordship decided that the outlawry could
not stand, the omission of the words “ of the County of
Middlesex ” from a sheriff’s writ having in his opinion ren-
dered it null and void.^ The decision was hailed with the
greatest joy, bonfires and illuminations being alight in
every town in England. Unable to appreciate the subtleties
of law the people regarded the judgment as another proof of
the efficacy of the late riots.
Ten days later Wilkes was brought into the court of
King’s Bench once more to receive sentence. The pro-
ceedings were brief, and the prisoner, being taken to
Westminster with the greatest secrecy, was not recognised
by the mob. The intrepid Glynn, who had been Wilkes's
counsel all through the long struggle, made a last effort for
his client, producing a sworn affidavit from George Kearsicy
to show that all the evidence had been obtained illegally
under a general warrant.* It fell to Justice Yates, as
senior judge, to pronounce sentence, a lucky circumstance
for Lord Mansfield, who had earned his full share of abuse
already through the “ alteration of the record.” For the
republication of The North Briton, "No. 45,” Wilkes was
condemned to pay a fine of £500, and be imprisoned for ten
months ; and for printing and publishing “ The Essay on
Woman ” a similar fine was imposed with twelve months’
imprisonment. In vain he pleaded that his former punish-
ment should be taken into consideration, but he was per-
mitted to move for a Writ of Error, referring the case to the
House of Lords,®
In contemporary opinion the dual sentence seemed both
lenient and severe. It was thought to ipflict a monstrous
* HowelVs State Trials y xix. 1 109-17.
* Life of WilkeSy J. Alnion, i. 164 ; The North Briton, W. Binglcj^
vol. i., Part I, p. Ivi. Kearsley evidently was trying to regain thego®
opinion of Wilkes and his party.
* Howell's State TrialSy xix. 1124 ; Reports of Cases y Sir James Burrow,
iv. 2527-78 ; Public Record Office, Crown Rolls, King’s Bench, No. *4 *
,768] THE MIDDLESEX ELECTION 203
penalty for printing the poem, since the twelve copies
evidently were intended for private circulation, and the
prosecution did not try to prove that Wilkes was the
author. The base methods employed to obtain the revise
proofs were remembered with disgust. In comparison
iiis punishment for republishing The North Briton was re-
garded as a moderate, if not a just one. Due warning had
been given of the risk he was running in repeating the
offence, and, in spite of verbal quibbles, he had accused
his Sovereign of telling a lie. Considering the harsh penalties
imposed upon political offenders it was impossible to con-
tend that a sentence of ten months* imprisonment was an
immoderate one for “ the libeller of his King.** Five years
before, had there been no foolish blunder with a general
warrant, he might have been sent to Newgate for the
remainder of his life without exciting the least popular
sympathy. Modern opinion, however, will probably re-
gard the “ Essay on Woman ** as the graver offence. At
all events, the criminal libels which it contained would
render its author liable to a far heavier sentence in the
present day.
CHAPTER XIII
THE SECOND PARLIAMENTARY WAR
1768-1769
E ver since the Middlesex election there had been
rumours that Wilkes would be expelled from
Parliament, but the Government observed the
greatest secrecy with regard to its plans.* Al-
though George the Third, exasperated by the persistency
with which his enemy tried to extenuate “ No. 45,” had
declared that “ the expulsion of Mr. Wilkes appears to be
very essential and must be effected,” there was much differ-
ence of opinion among the ministers.* Most of the Cabinet
were disposed to oblige the king, but Camden was wholly
averse to such a drastic measure, deeming it more politic
to let matters rest where they were.® Eventually the will
of the great lawyer prevailed. Grafton, a political dilettante
grown weary of his hobby, was glad to procrastinate, having
no inclination to incite the Wilkites to begin window-
smashing once more.
The Premier was bearing a heavy weight of unpopularity
already. Accepting office originally because his adherence
was necessary in order that Pitt might come into power, he
had been robbed by illness of the services of his colleague
for many months, besides sharing the odium which the Great
Commoner had incurred through the acceptance of a peerage-
» Add. MSS. 35,362. f. 192 ; 32.990, i- 23-
• Add. MS. 32,990, f. 71 ; Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H- _
pole, iii. 142-172 ; Correspondence of George III and Lord Norths !•*•»
Chatham Correspondence y iii. 324. .
• Memoirs of Duke of Graftony pp. 199-202 ; Lives of the Ch(Sitc^
John, Lord Campbell, v. 274-5.
204
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
i;63]
205
While the mob hated him because he had not obtained a
pardon for Wilkes, the upper classes were indignant at his
want of firmness during the riots. For the poverty and
distress that had increased so much in recent years his
Government was held responsible. With the American
t'olonists, too, it was becoming more detested every day
owing to the imposition of new import duties. In the
Cabinet, since Chatham had ceased to preside over its councils,
there was little unanimity. A heterogeneous medley of Whig
and Tory, they were bound together merely by love of place,
which, though possibly one of the strongest of political bonds,
is apt to be productive of fierce jealousies. Naturally
Grafton, who had never regarded Wilkes as a grievous sinner,
was loath to increase his own embarrassments by trying to
deprive the demagogue of his seat. So the summer passed
by, and the Government took no steps to gratify the king.
Instead, a sort of tacit compact seems to have been arranged,
the ministers being content to allow Wilkes to remain a
member of Parliament as long as he submitted to his
punishment quietly.*
But he was not prepared to keep his agreement after
the opening of the new session. With obstinate temerity
he refused to acknowledge that he was beaten. It was
only by audacity that he could hope to keep himself before
the eyes of the public, and he was confident that he had
everything to gain and nothing to lose by continuing his
battle with the ministerial forces. His sentence had been
pronounced and would not be increased. Thanks to the
generosity of his friends, it was probable that he might leave
prison free from debt. For the first time since he had become
famous a rich and influential party in the city had rallied
fo his side. HaVing overthrown Bute, made a laughing
stock of Grenville, and sown discord amongst the Rocking-
Biographical, Lit. and Political Anecdote, J. Almon, i. 8 ; Add. MS.
35.608, 1 . 286 ; Life of Wilkes, J . Almon, iii. 295. Cf . Letters of Lord Chester-
f“ld (Mahon), iv, 508.
206 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
hams, it was natural that he should feel confident of aveng.
ing himself effectively upon Grafton. Moreover, he honestly
believed that the rights of the people had been attacked in
his person and that he was engaged in a noble struggle for
freedom. Tliough not one of the most imaginative of men,
it was impossible that he should pose successfully as the
champion of Liberty for so long without being convinced
of the truth of his mission.
A few days before the meeting of Parliament he opened
the campaign with “ An Address to the Gentlemen, Clergy,
and Freeholders of the County of Middlesex ” — a form of
manifesto that he made use of incessantly — announcing
his intention of presenting a petition to the House of
Commons.^ It was significant that the rumours of his
rapprochement with the Government ceased immediately,
giving place to numerous reports that he would be expelled.
Owing to the wonderful licence allowed to the inmates of
the King’s Bench prison he was permitted to write what he
chose to the public press, and to have as many interviews
with his friends as he desired.® Unmoved by the entreaties
of his more cautious advisers, and unintimidated by minis-
terial menaces, he proceeded to compose the petition accord-
ing to promise, recounting all his grievances against the
authorities. He complained of his arrest under a general
warrant, of his imprisonment in the Tower “though
charged only with a misdemeanoiur,” of the seizure of his
papers, of the alteration of the record, of the bribing of his
servant, Michael Curry, and he concluded by submitting
“the whole of his Case to the Wisdom and Justice of the
House in full Persuasion of having an effectual and speedy
Redress of all his grievances.” *
The petition was presented on the first day of the new
session by Sir Joseph Mawbey, member for Southwark, a
^ The Political Register^ iii. 379. .
• Public Advertiser f Nov. 3 and 8, 1768 ; Works ofT» Gray (E. Gosse),
iii. 332.
* Journal of House of Commons ^ xxxii. 33.
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
1768]
207
pretentious blusterer, who was popularly known by the not
inappropriate sobriquet of “ Hog-stie,” being the proprietor
of a large distillery. By the device of carrying the war into
the enemy’s camp Wilkes hoped to arouse the spirit of the
Opposition as he had done in former years, so that it might
he prepared to fight his battle in Parliament if an attempt
was made to expel him. Like most of his tactics the
manoeuvre did good service to his cause, setting a light to a
flame that the court party could not extinguish till the whole
fabric of the constitution seemed in peril. Henceforth, for
many a long week, “ the case of Mr. Wilkes,” in some form
or another, occupied the attention of the House of Commons.
In the debate on the petition the noisy Mawbey was
supported with vigour by Beckford and Sawbridge, showing
that the City of London would lend considerable aid to the
popular cause, while William Dowdeswell, as an official
Wiig, also spoke on the same side.* During the next three
weeks it became apparent that, whether the ministers
wished it or no, the grievances of John Wilkes were going
to cause them an infinite deal of trouble. Messages and
conferences between the two Houses soon became necessary
almost every day. The debate on the petition was succeeded
by a discussion upon the delicate question of privilege.
% clever strategy the demagogue managed to obtain per-
mission to be heard at the Bar of the Lower House. With
amazing cunning he requested the peers to allow Lord March
and Lord Sandwich to be examined by the Commons,
almost causing a quarrel between the two chambers.® It
was an opening campaign of great dash and daring, wholly
Inlfilling his expectations as an advertisement and helping
to inspire the disunited minority with new courage.
Following up the advantage he had gained he hastened
> History, xvi. 532-3 ; Cavendish's Debates, i. 46-9.
History, xvi. 533-5; Journal of House of Commons,
In'rf"; 68, 72, 74, 79, 8t-3, 89, 91, 94-5, 99, 112-13 : Cavendish's
liTovl?’ !' 73-5, 77, 82-3, 93-5, 106-13 ; Utters of H
[ > oee), vii. 241-6 ; Journal of Lady Mary Coke, ii. 418-19.
208
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
to strike another deadly blow against the Government. By the
help of his friends in Southwark he had procured a copy of
the letter written in the previous April by Lord Weymouth
the Secretary of State, to Daniel Ponton, the Chairman of
the Quarter Sessions at Lambeth, in which the magistrates
were urged to take precautions to prevent the outbreak of
a riot. Delighted at the chance of reviling the ministers
he forwarded the document to the St. James’s Chronicle,
where it appeared on the loth of December with a prefatory
letter from the pen of Wilkes himself :
“ I send you the following authentic state paper, the
date of which, prior by more than three weeks to the fatal
loth of May, shows how long the horrid massacre in St.
George’s Fields had been planned and determined upon
before it was carried into execution, and how long a hellish
project can be brooded over by some infernal spirits without
one moment’s remorse.” *
The letter was anonymous, but when the House of Lords
summoned the printer of the newspaper before them to
answer for his breach of privilege the ministers learnt that
Wilkes was the real offender. Procedure required discre-
tion, for the culprit was still a member of Parliament, and,
though the Government would willingly have arraigned
him without delay, they were obliged to resort to another
conference between the two Houses, at which the represen-
tatives of the Commons were informed that “ the Lords
Spiritual and Temporal ” had resolved that the letter in
the St. James’s Chronicle was " an insolent, scandalous, and
seditious libel.” In no wise dismayed, Wilkes published
another " handbill ” to the Middlesex freeholders on th®
next day, in which he declared that Lord Weymouth s
letter was written " in characters of blobd.” ®
* Si. James's Chronicle, Dec. 8-io, 1768.
* Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iii. I 93"7 * ^ «
of H. Walpole (Toynbee), vii. 246 ; joumed of House of Commons,
Dec. 16; Cttvertdish's Debates, i. 106-111, 617: The North Sriterlt
Bingley, vol. i,. Part II, 498 ; vol. U., Part I, 20-1,
. 768 - 69 ] PARLIAMENTARY WAR
209
Ehiring the same week the Government endured a fresh
humiliation at his hands. Another election for the county
of Middlesex had taken place owing to the death of poor
gouty Cooke, and Wilkes’s nominee had been chosen. The
■new knight of the shire was Sergeant Glynn, the famous
barrister, a zealous partisan, though not one of Wilkes’s
most congenial companions, being scrupulous, circumspect,
and valetudinarian, the antithesis of his client in every
respect. Nor did the ill-luck of the Government end with
their defeat at the poll. Since a riot was anticipated a
regiment of foot-soldiers and a bodyguard of Irish chairmen
armed with staves had been provided for the protection of
the court candidate. Excited by the cheers of the Wilkites
" the bludgeon-men,” who had been spoiling for a fight all
day, grew unruly early in the afternoon, and at last made a
fierce onslaught on the crowd. In the battle that ensued
many heads were broken on both sides, one of the popular
party~a young lawyer named George Clarke — ^being killed
outright by a blow from the staff of an Irish pacificator.*
It was an unlucky incident from a ministerial standpoint,
but a most fortunate event for John Wilkes. The affray ^
made as great a noise as “the massacre in St. George’s
Fields ” and McQuirk, the homicidal chairman, became as
horrible a bete noire in the eyes of the populace as the
Scottish soldier who shot William Allen. Once more the
patriots accused the Government of shedding the blood of
its political opponents wilfully and with malice prepense, and
its unpopularity in consequence was increased a thousand-
told. In contrast the prestige of Wilkes as a defender of the
liberties of his countrymen rose higher still. Thousands of
honest folk were encouraged to believe that he was their sole
protector against a t3rranny worse than that of the Stuarts.
On the second day of the new year Wilkes added to his
offences against the Govenunent by allowing himsdf to be
' Ptiblic Advirtim, Dec. 9, 1768 ; GenttemM's Magmnt (1768),
P- 587 : Annual Rtgisier {1768), p. 193.
O
210 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES (,769
elected an Alderman of the Ward of Farringdon Without.^
Although he was a prisoner there was nothing to disqualify
him for the post. Nor were civic honours strictly confined
to those who had business connection with the city. It was
the custom for men of position, who desired commercial
influence for political purposes, to obtain a seat upon the ■
Common Council or Court of Aldermen. To serve as Lord
Mayor, or even as Sheriff, was an honoiur coveted by many
a wealthy man who had never lived nor traded in any of the
London Wards. The election was held at a Wardmote at
St. Bride’s Church amidst the usual scenes of popular en-
thusiasm, but owing to the poll being closed prematurely
by mistake it was declared illegal. Naturally, the decision
was regarded as another instance of ministerial persecution,
and at the next election, a few weeks later, Wilkes was
rechosen unanimously.*
An event to which Wilkes had looked forward wistfully
for several years took place about this time. On the 14th
of the month old Mrs. Meade passed away in the dismal
little court behind St. Sepulchre’s Church, leaving, it was
said, a fortune of ^^100,000. Probably the most remarkable
incident in her dreary career from the cradle to the tomb
was her funeral, which was " very grand,” the corpse " being
attended to the grave by 116 men carrying lights.” Al-
though the contents of her will cannot have caused her
son-in-law much disappointment, for his dear Polly was
left residuary legatee, it was certainly not flattering to his
pride. It was specified that the life interest in the estate,
bequeathed to Mrs. John Wilkes, was for her " sole use ”
and “ free from the control of her husband,” who was to
have “ no benefit.” Even the family jewels were only to
be " lent to her during Ms life ” at thd discretion of her
executors. A significant paragraph soon found its way
^ Aldermen of the City of London^ A. B. Beaven, p. 164.
* Public Advertiser f Jan. 3, 4, 5, 20, 23, 25, 28, 1769 ; London and
Kingdom^ R. R. Sharpe, iii. 84-5 ; Political Register ^ iv. 121 ; Ton/n ana
Country Magaxine, i. 52 ; London Magazinet xxxviii. 5a, 109.
,769] PARLIAMENTARY WAR 21 1
into The Public Advertiser. “ It is asserted that a Recon-
ciliation between a certain patriotic gentleman and his lady
will shortly take place to the entire satisfaction of their
respective families.” The prophecy was not fulfilled, but
the man who made it apparently was well acquainted with
Wilkes’s temperament.*
On Friday, the 27th of January, the same day that he
was re-elected an Alderman, Wilkes was allowed to attend
the House of Commons at the adjourned hearing of his
petition, which had already caused so many discussions
during the two previous months. The usual mob escorted
him from Southwark to St. Stephen’s, and the crowd that
invaded the building was so great that an order had to be
passed “ that the lobby and the Speaker’s chamber be
cleared of all persons except Mr. Wilkes, the Marshal of
the King’s Bench prison and his officers, the counsel,
witnesses, and agents attending the House.” The proceed-
ings lasted from noon until one o’clock on the following
morning, during most of which time the agitator held a
reception in the Sergeant’s room, his friends flocking to
congratulate him on being elected an Alderman. On behalf
of the Government Lord North moved that " the counsel
for Mr. Wilkes be not admitted to be heard upon any of the
allegations contained in the said petition” except the
alteration of the record and the bribing of Curry, the printer,
and, to the dehght of the king, the motion was carried by a
majority of 147.- When brought to the Bar Wilkes claimed
his right to take the oath as a member of the House, but his
request was refused on the ground that he was a prisoner.*
On the following Tuesday, at his next appearance before
his fellow-Commoners, when the consideration of his petition
was resumed, he made amends for his former lack of success
' Musgfave*s Obituary ^ iv. 175 ; Will of Mary Mead. P. C. C. 55 Bogg ;
Gentleman* $ Magazine (1769), p. 55 ; Public Advertiser y Jan. 20, 1769.
* Journal of House of Comtnonsy xxxii, 156 ; Parliamentary History^
XVI. 538-40 ; Cavendish* $ Debates, i. 120-8 ; Public Advertiser, Jan. 30,
^769; Correspondence of George III with Lord Norths i. 4.
212 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES ttre,
by scoring an important point against his enemies. Having
noticed that in one of the previous entries in the votes of
the House the word blasphemy w'as used in describing the
" Rssay on Woman,” he protested that no such word ex-
isted in the original record, and after a long debate thC
objectionable epithet was expunged. It was a triumph of ’
some importance, since the reputation of having been
condemned for blasphemy, which he now wiped away, had
done much to alienate many Nonconformist consciences.
As on the first day the discussion lasted for many hours,
and it was not until two o’clock on Wednesday morning
that Mr. Marshall Thomas was free to take back his prisoner
to St. George’s Fields.*
Much longer sittings wearied the House of Commons
during the next few days. Inspired by King George the
ministers had now resolved that Wilkes must be expelled
from Parliament. With the exception of Lord Shelburne
all the members of the Cabinet were agreed that his numer-
ous offences justified the punishment. In the debates
upon his petition the fighting spirit of the Opposition had
revived, while the publication of Lord We5nnouth’s letter
and the numerous manifestoes to the freeholders of Middlesex
had almost incited the people to rebellion. In the opinion
of the Government the best means of checking his power
of mischief was to drive him from the House of Commons
as Grenville had done, thus robbing him of the prestige and
privilege of a member of Parliament.
Ever since Wilkes had returned to England the Grafts
ministry had blundered from one mistake into another-
If severity had been their intention they might have pre-
vented him from displaying himself for weeks at the head
of the mob by clapping him into prison as’ soon as he arrived
in London. Had they resolved to adopt the wiser pdicy
of clemency they could have tom away his crown of
‘ Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iti. aia-135
England, J. Adolphus, i. 345 : Add. MS. 30,870, f. 105.
,;69] PARLIAMENTARY WAR 213
martyrdom by granting him a free pardon. In the former
case, by losing the magnetism of his presence and the in-
spiration of his leadership, the popular cause would have
been deprived of half the advantages that won its victory.
In the latter case the wrongs and persecutions of a powerful
demagogue would not have served as an incitement to riot
and disorder. It was the height of folly, also, on the part
of the Government to encourage a series of debates on the
merits of Wilkes’s petition, and to give the prisoner an
opportunity of making so many triumphal processions to
Westminster. In some respects the ministers had met with
considerable ill-luck. It was unfortunate that the reversal
of the outlawry, owing in a great measure to Lord Mans-
field’s verbosity, should be regarded as a concession to
popular clamour. It was more unfortunate still that there
should be two bloody encounters between the authorities
and the mob, and that on each occasion it should appear
to have been the former that had broken the law.
On Wednesday, the ist of February, the two fragments
of the petition which the House had consented to hear were
both rejected without a division, it being resolved that
Lord Mansfield’s alteration of the record was “ according to
law and justice,” and that " Mr. Wilkes has not made good
his charge against Philip Carteret Webb ” with respect to the
bribing of his servant. Dr. William Blackstone, the learned
jurist, who was member for Westbury in Wiltshire, delivered
an elaborate speec^i in defence of the Lord Chief Justice’s
action, and poor Philip Webb, now old and blind, was
present to hear once more the account of his sorry blunder-
ings as solicitor for the Treasury when he had conducted
fbe prosecution of Wilkes five years before.^
On the following morning Wilkes was brought again to
the Bar of the House of Commons and informed by the
Speaker that he was charged with being the author and
* Parhamtikuy History, xvi. 542-3 ; Cmsndish’ s Debatss, i. 131-8 ;
t^smoirs of the Bsigu of George HI, H. Walpole, ill. 214-16,
214 life of JOHN WILKES [,769
publisher of the Introduction to Lord Weymouth’s letter
which had appeared in The St. Jams’ Chronicle on the loth
of May, 1768. It was the most dramatic moment in his event-
ful life. Everyone knew, and none better than himself, that
the ministers had resolved to expel him. In both Houses
there was a large majority eager to obey the wishes of their '
king. All his hopes rested upon the unstable basis of
popular applause. If his forces were to melt away, as they
had done after his former expulsion, either a debtor’s prison
or a continental exile would be his fate when his present
sentence had expired. Yet he had weighed his chances and
was prepared to take the risk. During the past few months
his aspirations had assumed a wider range. It was no longer
his ambition to gain the usual reward for making himself
a political nuisance, a place of profit having ceased to be
the object of his desires. Since he had established his
influence in the City of London, which all through the ages
had been on the winning side, there was no need that he
should set any limit to his appetite. “ I see no reason,"
remarked one of his intelligent contemporaries, " why he
may not be Sheriff and Lord Mayor in regular succession,
and why not Prime Minister before he dies.’’ ^ So, confident
in his own strength, and regarding himself as the sole cham-
pion of liberty, he faced his enemies with undaunted courage,
honestly believing that he was striking the most splendid
blow for freedom since the time of the Great Charter.
A crowded House awaited his defence. He faced his
audience boldly, but with due respect, and his voice could
be heard distinctly by everyone.
" I was the person who sent Lord Weymouth’s letter
to the printer,’’ he declared, scornfully, “ and I do glory
in confessing myself the author and publisher of the pre-
fatory remarks. I thought it my duty to bring to light
that bloody scroll. I ask pardon, sir,’’ he continued, wifli *
* Th» Francis Letters, i. 103 ; Memoirs of Sir P. Franeie, Psrlses
Merivale^ i, 333.
.769] PARLIAMENTARY WAR 215
bow to the Speaker, “ that I made use of too mild and gentle
expressions when I mentioned so wicked, so inhuman, and
so cowardly a massacre as that in St. George’s Fields.”
Determined to omit no pretext for his expulsion, the
•Government entrusted the Attorney-General with a motion
declaring Wilkes guilty of an “ insolent, scandalous, and
seditious libel,” which, although Dr. Blackstone himself
objected that the matter should be left to a judge and jury,
was passed by a large majority in the early hours of the
morning.^
Later, when the House reassembled, on the same Friday
which was to prove the most unlucky day the ministry
had ever known. Lord Barrington, the Secretary at War,
moved for the expulsion of Wilkes on the ground that he
had published three libels, viz. The 'North Briton, the “ Essay
on Woman,” and the Preface to Lord Weymouth’s letter.
True to its folly the Government took the whole responsi-
bility upon its shoulders, although it might have left the
matter to the House of Commons and have allowed a
private member to propose the unpopular resolution. It
was an error in tactics, also, to make the motion for^
expulsion a composite one, charging Wilkes with a series
of accumulated crimes, the unfairness of the device being
obvious, since some might vote to expel him for one offence,
some for another, according to individual predilections.
During the course of the debate there was a remark-
able instance of the vicissitudes of pohtics, George Grenville
delivering a brilliant remonstrance against the expulsion.
Care-worn and pale, tom by the cough that was hurrying
him to his grave, he made a brave attempt to turn his fellow-
members from their purpose, speaking better than he had
ever done before, carefdly weighing his words. Being in
harmony now with Lord Temple he shared his brother’s
fierce animosity against Grafton, but there was no doubt
' Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 298 ; The North Briton, W. Bingley,
i., Part II., p, 554 ; CavendisKs Debates, i. 139-51*
216 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES ti ;69
that the change in his attitude towards Wilkes was per-
fectly sincere. A few months later, through his exertions,
an act was passed depriving the House of Commons of the
right to decide a disputed election, and he desired to put
an end to all antagonism between the legislature and the
electorate. “ Let us look a little forward,” he suggested,
“ and see in what difficulties a concurrence in the present
measure will involve us. Mr. Wilkes will certainly be re-
elected ; you wiU expel again, and he will be again returned.
What is to be done then, and how is so disgraceful a contest
to terminate ? ” It was evident that the speaker realised
that the freeholders of Middlesex were made of sterner
stuff than the townsfolk of Aylesbury
It was a long and stormy debate, lasting till after three
o’clock in the morning. Most of the ministerial orators
spoke as though the three offences of which Wilkes was
accused had created a disability that made his expulsion
a matter of course. Some members, as Grenville had
prophesied, gave their approval to certain parts of the charge
and disapproved of others. Dr. Blackstone considered
that Wilkes should be expelled because he had published
the “ Essay on Woman.” Lord Frederick Caunpbell, the
brother of the Duke of Argyll, believed that he should be
driven from the House for having written the 45th number
of the North Briton, while Jeremiah Dyson, who was re-
garded as an authority on the question, declared that Wilkes
was disqualified from sitting in Parliament owing to his
imprisonment. Some wished to punish the member for
the County of Middlesex because he was a “ blasphemer of
his God,” others because he was a ” libeller of his King.”
From his seat among the Opposition Edmund Burke
delivered an eloquent speech, warning the ministers of the
folly of their ways, demanding scornfully how the three
alleged offences could deprive the member for Middlesex
* Parliamentary History, xvi. 546-75 ; Gentleman’s Magasine,
544-5 : Stowe MS. 37*, f. *9.
.769] PARLIAMENTARY WAR 217
of the right of being elected into Parliament. Protest was
useless, and the motion to expel Wilkes was carried by a
majority of eighty-two.^
Of all the members in the House probably not one
enjoyed himself as much as the condemned man. " Mr.
Wilkes’s behaviour on a solemn occasion,” said the news-
papers, " was acknowledged even by his opponents to be
firm, manly, decent, revering, but not crouching.” Though
some thought that his speeches showed little skill, all were
agreed that he bore himself with confidence. After the
division he begged leave to address the House once more,
but the request was refused peremptorily. On his return
to prison, however, he gave vent to his indignation in another
" handbill ” to the " Gentlemen, Clergy, and Freeholders of
the County of Middlesex.” Assuring his constituents that
his “ courage was not appalled ” nor his “ spirit in the least
abated,” he appealed to them to assert their right “ of naming
their own representatives ” by electing him once more.
" If ministers can once usurp the power of declaring who
shall not be your representative, the next step is very easy,
and will follow speedily. It is that of telling you whom
you shdl send to Parliament, and then the boasted Con-
stitution of England will be entirely tom up by the roots.” *
The contention was re-echoed with enthusiasm by his
' followers, and became one of the chief arguments against
■ f“s expulsion.
The election took place at Brentford on the i6th of the
®onth. Although the rain fell in torrents a great crowd
1 ®®embled in front of the polling-booth. No candidate
'ventured to oppose the popular hero, and about twelve
''clock he was chosen for the second time " by the unani-
“'ous voice of above two thousand of the most respectable
ceeholders.” James Townshend, member for West Loe,
1 , Debates, i. 151-184 ; Journal of House of Commons,
f. ‘ I Caldwell Papers, Part II, vol. ii. p. 150.
I „“*'^^8o*rtis«’,Feb.4,8, 1769; TheNorthBriton,y/.Bmgley,v(A.i.,
( ^“•' 543 - 5 .
2 i8
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,765
and John Sawbridge, member for Hythe, both persons of
influence in the City of London, proposed and seconded the
nomination. Knowing that he could not fail to be re-
elected Wilkes celebrated the day by giving a dinner in
“ his apartments ” in the King’s Bench prison to some of
his influential supporters, at which the pihe de resistam
was “ a fine large swan.” Music played all the while to
this most pampered of prisoners, and during the afternoon a
number of " Gentlemen on horseback, with drums beating,
French horns playing, and colours flying, on their return from
Brentford,” rode close past his window " to felicitate him
on his election.” At night the gaol was illuminated, and
” the evening concluded with the utmost joy and festivity."
Next day, on the motion of Lord Strange, the House of
Commons resolved that Wilkes was “ incapable of being
elected a member to serve in the present Parliament.” ^
Four weeks elapsed before the next contest, during which
interval Wilkes inveighed against the ministers in a number
of vigorous manifestoes to the Middlesex freeholders. It
was not until the eve of the polling-day that a second candi-
date could be induced to enter the lists, when one Charles
Dingley of Golder’s HiU, an ex-private in the foot-guards,
who, turning to commerce, had become the proprietor of
a lucrative saw-mill on the New Cut at Limehouse, was
pereuaded by the Government to oppose the demagogue.
The election took place on Thursday the i6th of March.
Intimidation and threats failed to turn the valorous Dingky
from his purpose. Shortly before the polling-day he had
broken his knuckles on the teeth of Wilkes's attorney in *
scuffle at the King’s Arms Tavern in Comhill, getting
knocked down for his pains, and he made his appearance
on the hustings at Brentford Butts on the morning of the
contest, facing a derisive multitude without flinch^'
waiting patiently for some freeholder to propose ii®'
* Public Advertiser, Feb. 17, 18, 1769 ; Lotsion MageuiKSt WM’dS-
Journal of House of Commons, xxxii. 228.
,769] PARLIAMENTARY WAR 219
None, however, ventured to undertake the dangerous task,
and when at last the disappointed candidate was induced
by his friends to leave the scene, Wilkes was re-elected a
knight of the shire for the county of Middlesex for a third
time. On the next day the House of Commons again
resolved that the election was null and void, and the
Deputy-Clerk of the Crown was instructed to issue a
new writ.^
Hitherto the struggle between the Government and the
Middlesex freeholders had caused more amusement than
indignation, the mob having watched the futile efforts to
rob their hero of his constituency with laughter and derision.
The contest now entered upon a more serious phase. Shortly
after the third expulsion it became known that the ministers
had secured a candidate who was resolved to oppose John
Wilkes or perish in the attempt, and it was understood that
he would have the support of all the power and influence of
the Crown.^ Henry Lawes Luttrell was the name of the
Government champion, a colonel in the army, bold, sombre,
and saturnine, a man who was thought to bear a personal
gnidgc against the popular idol. Few reprobates of the
day had earned a more unsavoury renown than his father,
Lord Irnham, and the son, who had covered himself with
odium during his undergraduate days at Oxford by the
betrayal of a peasant girl, was almost as notorious for his
lack of moral principle. At the family seat of Luttrelstown,
near Dublin, a succession of notorious sjn'ens reigned as
distress, Sophia Baddeley being probably the most re-
naarkable.® As a general rule father and son were on the
’ Public Advertiser, ^arcb i6 and 17, 1769 ; Toum and Country Magatine,
'■ 137, i66 ; Chatham Correspondence, iii. 35a : Letters of Lord Maitnes-
i. 175-6 ; Life of Lord Shelh-urne^ E. Fitzmaurice, ii. 186 ; Repfesen-
* Hist., F. H. B. Oldfield, iv, 173 ; Cat of Satirical Prints, iv. 506-10.
3 Advertiser, March 22, 1769 ; Grenville Papers, iv. 413.
Town and Country Magazine, iii. 626, iv. 177; Mems, of Miss
^^flla Bolton; Mems, of Sophia Baddeley, v. 62-103 ; The Diaboliad,
Combe.
220
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES ii ;69
worst of terms, the latter on one occasion refusing a challenge
to a duel that Lord Imham had sent him on the ground
that he was not a gentleman.
After the announcement of Colonel Luttrell’s candidature
the temper of the people underwent a swift change. At’a
mass meeting of the Middlesex freeholders in the Mile End-
Assembly Room it was resolved to retmn Wilkes to Parlia-
ment as often as the House of Commons expelled him. It
became evident that the populace was prepared to plunge
into rebellion in defence of the freedom of election. The
mere presentation of an address to the king by some of the
merchants of London excited the mob to the wildest fury,
and the zealous loyalists passed through the streets on their
way to St. James’s Palace amidst a riotous multitude,
who pelted the procession during the whole journey with
volleys of sticks and stones. Shouts of " Wilkes and no
king ” rent the air, and outside the palace an angry crowd
beat and insulted everyone who endeavoured to pass within.
Noblemen were dragged from their carriages. Lackeys
were rolled in the mud. Even a regiment of foot-guards
did not intimidate the mob, who jeered at the muskets and
dared the soldiers to fire, A hearse, draped in black, was
driven down St. James’s Street, displaying pictures re-
presenting the shooting of Allen in St. George’s Fields and
the bludgeoning of Clarke by the Irish chairman at Brent-
ford. It was not imtil a troop of horse had charged upon
the mob that the riot was quelled.^ To all appearance the
country was on the verge of revolution.
“ Peace is at present restored,” wrote Walpole a few
days later, voicing the general opinion of the hour, “ Peace
is at present restored, and the rebellion adjourned to the
13th of April, when Wilkes and Colonel Luttrell ate to
fight a pitched battle at Brentford.” The latter was
1 Public Advertiser, March 23, 1769 ; Grenville Papers, iv. 4*® ■
of Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iu. 232-3 ; Ctrt. of ScHriM^^' I
iv. 314-16 ; Works of T. Gray (E. Gosse), ill. 339; Hisi. AfSS-iW?**'’
loth Report, Appendix, Part I, 4i3“4-
1769]
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
221
believed to run so great a risk that odds were freely offered
against his life, and the authorities looked forward to the
polling-day with grave apprehension. Adequate prepara-
tions, however, were made to deal with the threatened
rebellion. A proclamation had been published in the
Gazette, and the capital was filled with soldiers. Yet, as
the election drew nearer the Wilkites became less bellicose.
The patriot’s handbills to the Middlesex freeholders ceased
to hurl threats against the Government. Some of the most
influential of his supporters were anxious to prevent a
renewal of the disturbances. Instructions were given to
the committees that there must be no rioting.
The contest itself began to be amusing. In addition to
Wilkes and Luttrell two other candidates took the field.
Sergeant William Whitaker, an ambitious barrister of some
ability but with more vanity, thrust himself into the fray in
the hope that the Rockingham party would recognise him as
the official Whig candidate, alive no doubt to the fact that
if Luttrell were killed by the mob he might step into his
shoes.* The other adventurous soul was Captain David
Roach, nicknamed " Tiger,” a conventiond Hibernian
swashbuckler, who had lived upon his wits with varied
success for many years, often seeming to illustrate the
contemporary adage that “ if one threw a naked Irishman
over London Bridge he would come up at Westminster in
a laced coat and a sword.” Ever since the affair of the
general warrant this Tiger Roach had striven to win
Wilkes’s friendship by offering to "chastise” indiscrimi-
nately any Scotsman in Europe, and he came forward as
^ candidate, with Wilkes’s permission, in the hope that he
would be able to provoke Colonel Luttrell to cross swords
With him. Small, pale, and scowling, with a black patch on
cheek and " a quivering eye,” the appearance of the
raised laughter throughout the constituency, where
. ' Correspondence, i. 340 ; Grenville Papers, iv. 419 ; Whitaket
^ caricatured as Sergeant Circuit in Foote's farce, The Lame Lover ^
222
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,765
he was regarded as a mountebank put up by the witty Wilkes
in travesty of his principal opponent.^
Good-humour continued to prevail on the morning of
the election. The leaders of the popular party held their
followers well in hand, and their organisation was as ela-
borate as usual. Never before had the processions of
voters that marched to Brentford been so large or more
imposing. Bands of music, waving standards, flags that
displayed the stirring watch-words “ Magna-Carta ” and
“ Bill of Rights,” cavalcades of horsemen four abreast, an
endless stream of hackney-coaches draped in blue and full
of exuberant freeholders with cockades in their hats, all
these splendid tokens of Mr. Wilkes’s power delighted the
holiday crowds as they passed through the London streets.
One high-spirited body, carrying the banners of the various
societies to which this hero belonged (the Lumber Troopers,
Antigallicans and the like,) halted outside Newgate to
serenade one of their irrational fellows, named Captain
Miles Allen, who had been shut up for sending a challenge
to a member of Parliament, and then making their way to
the Royal Exchange they shouted mockingly for the van-
quished Dingley to go with them as their candidate. It
was noted that many ladies were wearing breast-knots of
blue and silver in honour of Wilkes.
The court party was able to make little display in
response. It had been intended that Colonel Luttrell
should ride to Brentford with a large escort of gentlemen,
but scarcely more than a score kept their appointment, and
the little band had to leave the house of the candidate by
the back garden to avoid the crowd. On coming to Hyde
Park Comer a jeering mob closed around the cavalcade
and though a few of them, including the candidate, manned
to force their way to Knightsbridge, the rest were driven
‘ Add. MSS. 30,867, f. 225 ; 30,868, f. 1 ; 30,870, f. 134 :
25 ; Town and Country Magazine, vii. 359, 657 ; Covent Gar^Magan»*t‘
n8 ; St. Jameses ChYonicle, 22-25, Oct. 1763 ; Middlesex Jewtftxlt J
4, 1774 ; Ann. Register (1775), p. 237 ; Musgrave's Obituofy,
1769]
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
223
back to town. True to his resolve Luttrell made his way
to Brentford and mounted the hustings, but had it not been
for the protection of James Townsend, who, being a pro-
minent Wilkite, was able to control the people, it is probable
that he would have paid for his intrepidity with his life.
It was not till after five o’clock that the poll was closed.
Although the number of votes obtained by Wilkes was
less than at the first election, his total being only 1143,
Luttrell received no more than 296, while 5 were given
to Sergeant Whitaker. Early in the forenoon Tiger Roach
withdrew his candidature, it being noised abroad that he
had been bribed by the Government. After the election
was over the mob returned in triumph to London, several
thousand strong, " with coloiurs flying and music playing,”
and, marching through St. James’s Street past the royal
palace, they made their way to the King’s Bench prison
"to congratulate Mr. Wilkes on his success.” At night
there were illuminations " from Northumberland House all
through the city, but,” probably because the town was
full of soldiers, “ no riot nor compulsion.” ^
On the next day the election was once more declared
null and void, and it was rumoured that Messrs. Townsend
and Sawbridge might be expelled by the House of Commons
for their temerity in proposing Wilkes after he had been
thrice rejected. During the debate young Charles James
I Fox, a handsome and eloquent maccaroni, the son of Lord
; Holland, whose juncture with Bute had called The North
Briton into being, spoke warmly in favour of the expulsion,
showing plainly that the Tories at last had produced
1 Mother great orator.* On the following afternoon George
Hnslow, one of the demagogue’s renegade friends, proposed
fhat Colonel Luttrell ” ought to have been returned,”
2 o .^**^^*^ Advertiser y April 14 and 15, 1679 ; London Magaxiney xxxviii.
A ’ Reg.y iv. 292-6 ; Hist. MSS. Com., loth Report, Appen-
► P* 415 1 Walpole's Letters (Toynbee), vii. 268-9 ; Memoirs
^ of George III, H. Walpole, 235-6.
Correspondence ofC. /. Fox, u 51*
224 life of JOHN WILKES [,765
contending that " when votes were given to a person in-
capable of being chosen these votes were looked upon as
being thrown away and the person next on the poll was
always elected.” Although this argument, upon which
the Government entirely based their case, was refuted by
Sergeant Glynn, who showed that Wilkes was not dis*
qualified by law but only by the vote of one part of the
legislature, " the Sorry Motion-maker ” carried his resolu-
tion by a majority of 54 in the early hours of Sunday
morning.*
In spite of this last provocation there was no popular
demonstration, the Wilkites bearing the expulsion of their
idol with amazing fortitude. The least incentive would
have raised a riot, but no one seemed eager to arouse the
mob. For at last, though so late in the day, the Opposition
was ready to take up Wilkes’s cause once more, and the
shrewdest of the patriots preferred to await the result of
parliamentary agitation. The first skirmish with the
Government took place on the 8th of May, when, after con-
sidering a petition presented by the Middlesex freeholders,
the House of Commons decided by a majority of 69 that
Colonel Luttrell had been duly elected.* “ A most glorious
day,” Earl Temple described it, “ not a shadow of an
argument in favour of the disqualification,” and he con-
sidered that the minority had fought a good fight.* His
satisfaction was justified. Although the Opposition vras ,
split up into several factions, and although many a true
■y^ig regarded the question of the Middlesex election as
merely a weapon with which to fight his way back to office,
from that time onward it remained their best rallying"^
of all, Mr. Wilkes and his seat in Parliament continoinS
to be a subject of debate that every minister had nw®*
reason to dread.
* Parliamentary History, xvi. 585-8 ; Cavendish's DeMes, V 3®^' ,
* JonrncU of House of Commons, xxxii. 451.
* Chatham Correspondence, iii, 357.
1769]
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
225
At one time or another during the next two years
all the finest intellects in the land were occupied in the
.controversy. In both Houses the greatest orators made
notable speeches to justify the decision of the Commons or
in defence of the rights of the electorate. The most
distinguished authors wrote letters to the newspapers and
published elaborate tracts. In the daily journals and the
monthly magazines the discussion was continued by a host
of fluent pens.
The problem of the Middlesex election involved three
distinct issues. The House of Commons claimed the right
not only to expel the offending member, but to disqualify
him from being re-elected until after a dissolution of Parlia-
ment, and, being defied by his constituency, to nominate
another in his place. The ministers based their case upon
the contention that the House of Commons must be the
sole judge in regard to the seat of any of its members.^
The patriotic party retorted that the electors had an
inherent right of choosing their own representative,
provided that he was not disqualified by the law of the
land. The Government declared that the vote of the
House of Commons in itself created a legal disability, and
therefore the choice of Luttrell was an inevitable result.
Much forensic eloquence was devoted to this particular
argument. Sir William Meredith, in a popular pamphlet
entitled The Question Stated, protested that Wilkes still
was “ eligible of common right ” and could not be dis-
qualified but by an Act of Parliament.* Dr. Blackstone,
in a Letter to the Author of “The Question Stated,” con-
tended that since Wilkes was under the ban of a vote of
the Lower House he was incapacitated by the law and
custom of Parliament.* To which Meredith replied, in
a Letter to Dr. Blackstone, that the law and custom of
' Memoirs of Duke of Grafton, p. 195.
’ The Question Stated (G. WoodfaU), 1769.
A Letter to the Author of" The Question Stated " (C. Bathurst), 1769.
P
226 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES (1769
Parliament depended on the law of the land, and that there
was no law in the Statute Book which deprived the popular
candidate of the right of being re-elected by his constituents.
‘‘ The whole Legislature can create an incapacity,” he argued,
“ but the House of Commons alone cannot,” and the pro-
position became one of the chief moral dogmas of the.
patriots.* It was open, however to the ministerial party to
reply with some reason that the consent of the whole legis-
lature in this particular case was merely a question of form,
since it was obvious that the Upper House would have
endorsed any resolution of the Lower, while the approval of
the Sovereign must have followed as a matter of course.
The convictions of the extreme Tories, who, with strange
inconsistency, were willing to attribute a species of divine
right to a resolution of the House of Commons, were ex-
pounded by Dr. Johnson in a pamphlet called The False
Alarm, the rhetoric of which is its most admirable feature.
“ A member of the House cannot be cited for his conduct-
in Parliament before any other court,” the lexicographer
declared with an odd confusion of issues, ” and therefore
if the House cannot punish him he may attack vrith im-
punity the rights of the people and the title of the King.” *
It was pointed out, however, a hundred times that the
House of Commons was punishing Wilkes twice over for
two of the offences that had caused his expulsion, while
for another of his alleged crimes he might well have been
prosecuted at common law. " If the Commons have only
the power of dismissing for a few days the man whom his
constituents can immediately send back,” the Doctor
maintained, in another oft-repeated proposition, “ if they can
expel but cannot exclude, they have nothing more than
nominal authority, to which perhaps obedience never may
be paid.” ® The obvious reply to which was the objection
‘ A Letter to Dr. Blackstorte (G. Woodfall), 1770, p. 43-
• The False Alarm (T. Cadell, 2nd ed. 1770), p. 9*
* The False Alarm^ p. 19.
im PARLIAMENTARY WAR 227
that the House not only had expelled and excluded a dis-
obedient member, but had proceeded to invade the rights
of the electorate by choosing another man in his place.
In an able essay, entitled “ The Case of the last Election
for the County of Middlesex considered," the ubiquitous
Jeremiah Dyson published the best defence, perhaps, of
any pamphleteer on behalf of the Government, making
a brave attempt to establish the tremendous proposition
that the expulsion of a member of the House of Commons
created in him such an incapacity to be re-elected that at a
subsequent election any votes given to him were null and
void, and that any other candidate, who, except the person
expelled, had the greatest number of votes, ought to be the
sitting member. Although quoting many precedents he
failed to refute the unanswerable objection of “ Junius,”
\rao argued that “ it will be necessary to produce some statute
in which that positive provision shall have been made, that
special disability clearly created, and the consequence of it
declared, or, if there be no such statute, the custom of
Parliament must then be referred to, or some case or cases
strictly in point must be produced with the decision of the
court upon them. ...” *
” If the Commons begin to tell a constituency whom it
shall not choose,” Wilkes had proclaimed in prophetic
words, ‘‘ they will proceed to tell it whom it shall choose.” *
After the decision of the House of Commons on the 8th
of May the choice of Luttrell became the one grand point
ot issue, in comparison with which the powers of expulsion
appeared nugatory and irrelevant. The opponents of the
Government protested that if the House of Commons had
fhe right of admitting members to sit in Parliament against
an acknowlec^ed Inajority of legal electors, the right of the
freeholders to choose their own representatives had dis-
The Case of the last Election for the County of Middlesex considered
' ■ ^dell, 1769) ; Biographies of Wilkes and Cobbett, Rev. J. S. Watsoib
PP- 78-80 ; Letters of Junius (Bohn, 1910), i. 177.
Address to Middlesex Freeholders on Feb. 4, 1769.
22 $
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1769
appeared. No one denied that the Commons had the
power to expel an obnoxious member, but although the
Government quoted many precedents to suit its purpose,
it failed to prove that a vote of the Lower House could act
as a disqualification.
A quarrel between the legislature and the electorate is as
futile and as undignified as a quarrel between a parent and
an adult child. In the great controversy that raged around
the Middlesex election it was passion and not reason that
played the chief part. Had the ministers been fortified
by a thousand precedents their policy towards the sitting
member would have been neither wise not expedient. No
argument would convince the electors that the Government
had either law or justice on their side in not allowing Wilkes,
for whom more than 1100 had voted, to become their repre-
sentative, and in seating Luttrell, who was supported by
less than 300, in the place of their chosen man. When they
had elected him originally he was not a prisoner, nor was
he legally an outlaw, nor disqualified in any other way, and
the administration had tacitly acknowledged the fact by
doing nothing to interfere with his candidature. That he
had been shut up since in the Marshalsea in St. George's
Fields was regarded as a matter that merely concerned the
Middlesex freeholders, who were aware, before they gave
their votes after his expulsion, that they would be deprived
of his services in Parliament for two years. Not only did
the electors fail to comprehend how a mere resolution of the
House of Commons, even though it was reiterated four
times, could deprive them of the right of selecting their
own representative, but they were embittered by the tcnns
in which the resolution was framed.* The accumulated
charges set forth in the motion under Which Wilkes bad
been expelled were considered to be merely an excuse for
ministerial tyranny. Everyone was convinced that the
member for Middlesex would have been allowed to retaw
' Journal of House of Commons, xxxii. 178.
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
1769]
229
his seat if he had done nothing to provoke the Government,
and the arguments of the court party, believed to be manu-
factured to fit the occasion, seemed to ring hollow and in-
sincere even when their logic was sound.
■ The struggle over the Middlesex election was not merely
a struggle between the House of Commons and a particrilar
constituency. It was a struggle between the Crown and
Parliament on the one hand and the larger part of the
nation on the other. If the freeholders of Middlesex had
been as docile and subservient as the citizens of Aylesbury
it is improbable that the expulsion of Wilkes would have
caused much turmoil, but when his constituents refused to
accept any other representative the whole country began to
take sides in the fray. The object lesson was one of grave
significance. What had happened to Middlesex to-day
might be the fate to-morrow of any borough or county
in the land ! All persons of advanced political opinions,
whether or not they admired the personality of John Wilkes,
considered it their duty to espouse his cause. For the
moment at least liberty seemed synonymous with his name.
The large majority, too, of his adherents were non- *
electors. If not coatless, as he himself had suggested, most
of the Wilkites at any rate were voteless men. Hitherto, an
extension of the franchise had been neither advocated nor
desired. The great mass of the people were content to
leave the British constitution undsturbed, and to order
themselves lowly and reverently towards their betters.
Now, and for the first time perhaps since " the glorious
Revolution,” the non-elector began to realise and regret his
own impotency. From this date onward a definite agi-
tation for Parliamentary reform was an established political
phenomenon, an^ a party that advocated a more widely
extended suffrage became an important element in the
state. Although circumstances postponed the fulfilment
of these ambitions for mwe than sixty years, the aspirations
that were awakened during the contest over the Middlesex
230 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,769
election were never allowed to sleep. The pioneers of
1769 were the political ancestors — ^with a distinct and un-
broken lineage — of the men who carried the Reform Bill
of 1832.
The fight over John Wilkes’s seat in Parliament had’
another and a still more important result. It warned the
nation of a danger, which, although hastened by the re-
actionary policy of George the Third, had menaced the
constitution also in the days of Walpole and of Pelham.
The executive now held the legislature in complete subjec-
tion. The individual politician had lost all his indepen-
dence. The majority in the House of Commons had
become the humble obedient servant of the Government
of the day. Its members were merely pawns in the
political game and made every move as the ministerial hand
directed them. From the moment of their election the
supporters of the administration ceased to be representatives
of the people, having sold themselves into bondage for seven
years. At the same time the domination of the ministers
was substantially confirmed by their disposal of patronage,
any recalcitrant follower being paid his price if it was
worth the while, and the recent manipulations in the Civil
Service, whereby a host of clerks had become the nominees
of the administration, had increased the influence of the
party in power in an immeasurable degree.^
To the British nation, which has always cherished the
principle of representative government, the threatened
advent of a bureaucracy seemed an unwelcome change-
Many staunch ministerialists were dismayed to see that the
House of Commons had been muzzled and its members
reduced to mere automata. Few had anticipated that
party discipline would demand the surrender of all co®'
science and all initiative. From the time of the Middlesex
election a natural reaction began to set in, and a senes
of counter-checks gradually won back a much fuller measure
' Early Histary of C. J. Fox, Trevelyan, pp. 3i-3‘
1769]
PARLIAMENTARY WAR
231
of independence for the individual member of Parliament.^
The mutiny of leading statesmen, such as Chatham and
Shelburne, Conway and Camden, was the first indication
that the House of Commons would break away sooner or
later from the fetters with which it was bound. Many
influential members of the Opposition, in order to demon-
strate that they at least were the representatives of the
people still, began to make a practice of addressing public
meetings, which, by affording the private politician the
means of sheltering himself behind the opinion of his con-
stituents, helped to undermine the authority of the Govern-
ment. It became the custom for the electors to show that
they expected some sort of allegiance from their own member
by issuing instructions ” to him in the form of an address,
petition, or remonstrance to Parliament or to the Crown.
Yet, in spite of the greater freedom that was gained at
last by the rank and file of the House of Commons, an esprit
de corps and a love of common principles was alone suffi-
cient to preserve loyalty amidst the great political parties
of the state. Whether he has appeared in the guise of a
monarch, a dictator, or as a constitutional statesman, the
British Parliament has never tolerated the methods of the
drill sergeant longer than it has been obliged.
With a loyal, an apathetic, and an industrious people
upon which to work his will it had seemed probable that
George the Third would succeed in his attempt to banish
“revolution principles” from the theory of government,
and might make himself as absolute a Sovereign as any
Stuart or Tudor king. That he was successful only par-
tially in his design, that he was unable to establish absol-
ntism on any true foundation was due to the fact that thus
* Who was a person of much greater consequence from 1783 to the
Ume of the great Reform Bill than he had been under the administrations
of Grafton and North. The publication of Parliamentary debates, for
which John Wilkes was mainly responsible, helped to bring about this
result, but the change had its origin in the great upheaval that began in
1769.
232 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [>769
early in his reign he found himself in bitter hostility to a
large portion of his people. It is for this reason that the
Middlesex election is one of the great constitutional land-
marks of the eighteenth century. It is on this account
that John Wilkes was one of the most important political
personages of his time.
The other more important pamphlets on the Middlesex election, besides
those mentioned in the text, are :
A Letter from a Member of Parliament on the » Middles
Elections, H. Hingeston, 1 769
The Speech of a Right Honourable Gentleman (i.e, George Grenville) on
the Motion for Expelling Mr, Wilkes. J. Almon, 1769.
A Letter to the Right Hon, George Grenville, [By John Wilkes.] Isaac
Fell, 1769.
A Fair Trial on the Important Question, or the Rights of Election Asserted,
[By Mackintosh, barrister.] J. Almon, 1769.
A Letter to Samuel Johnson, [By John Wilkes. J. Almon, 1770.
CHAPTER XIV
A HOLIDAY IN PRISON
1768-1770
D uring the many hundred years that the famous
1 gaol existed in St. George’s Fields no human
' being ever served a term of imprisonment
within its walls under such happy conditions as
John Wilkes. From first to last it must have been evident
to him that he continued to be the most popular man in
England. Any number of friends were allowed to visit
him whenever they desired. His board was sumptuous,
his lodging the best that the prison could provide. And,
greatest solace of all, he was able to pursue his crusade on
behalf of “ Liberty ” without hindrance, being permitted
to write and publish whatever he chose, and to take counsel
with the most militant of his supporters. Except that he
was prohibited from leaving the gaol he was as much his
own master as if he were living in his own house.
Anticipating a long imprisonment, his first considera-
tion was to provide a home for his daughter, not wishing
ber to remain any longer in " the dismal dungeon of St.
Sepulchre’s.” Polly Wilkes was now in her eighteenth
year, a merry amiable girl with much charm of manner, and
the grace and elegance of the well-bred Parisienne. In
spite, however, of her sparkling black eyes she was in-
ordinately plain, almost ugly, resembling her father in
nearly every feature. The bond of sympathy between the
two had become even stronger and closer still since their
sequent partings, and she was more attentive than ever to
“s slightest wish, seeming to have no other thought but
333
[1768
234 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
to give him pleasure. In her estimation he was the greatest
hero and the noblest martyr that the world had ever seen.
Few women have shown so perfect an example of filial affec-
tion as the daughter of John Wilkes.
Suitable lodgings having been found at the house of Mrs.
Henley in Prince’s Court, Polly was allowed to set up an
establishment on her own account with her devoted maid,
La Vallerie, to take care of her. Apparently she was de-
lighted to leave Mrs. Meade’s home, and her mother does
not seem to have offered any objection. “ I hope in Prince’s
Court, as everywhere else,” wrote her father, when she
first told him of the new arrangement, “ to give you every
convenience, every elegance, every pleasure. I know your
perfect prudence, and have every reliance on your good
conduct in all things. The more you have been tried the
more I have found reason to approve and love you. I can
safely trust you to be your own mistress.” ^ Now that
he had endowed her with every accomplishment, he was
anxious that she should prove also a good housewife. " I
beg my dear girl to buy a house-book,” he wrote later,
“ and to set down all expenses, beginning from the first of
her coming to Prince’s Court. Monday will be a good day
to settle the whole, and to pay the week’s expenses. One
thing I insist on ; which is, that my dear daughter does not
deny herself any pleasure of any kind she chooses, and let
me know what it is, and I will contrive it. ... I
expend for myself with so much pleasure as for my dear
girl.” *
The King’s Bench prison, which stood at the soum-
west comer of Blackman Street in St. George’s Fields, was
said by a contemporary historian to resemble " a neat
little regular town.” Lofty walls, thirty feet in heigW>
surrounded the block of buildings, leaving sufficient space
for a garden and recreation ground. Save for the turnkeys
* Life of WilkeSy J. Almon, iii. 284 ; Add. MS. 30,8791 f*
* Life of Wilkesi J. Almon, iii. 286 ; Add. MS. 30 , 879 >
A HOLIDAY IN PRISON
1768]
235
at the gate, there was nothing about the place to suggest
that it was used as a gaol. Along either side of a broad
thoroughfare — ^known as King Street — ^that ran through
the centre of the prison, were rows of shops and tradesmen’s
stalls, around which a crowd of eager customers was to be
seen during the whole day. Near the entrance stood a
roftee-house, where the prisoner might read the daily journal
over his morning pipe. A tavern and a tap-house farther
down the road did as brisk a trade as any other in the
borough of Southwark. There was a fives-court also that
was much patronised by the younger inhabitants. Both
the debtors as well as the convicts of the Court of King’s
Bench were free to roam about the gaol and amuse them-
selves as they pleased. At the end of King Street, standing
in a small paved court enclosed from the rest of the yard,
was a two-storied building called the State-house, contain-
ing twelve apartments de luxe for the benefit of privileged
prisoners. In “ the most spacious and pleasing room ” on
the first floor in this secluded portion of the gaol, with its
windows overlooking St. George’s Fields, John Wilkes took
up his abode on the day of his commitment, and he was
fortunate enough to retain it until his sentence expired.*
Zealous partisans vied with each other from the first
in showering gifts upon the great man. “ His table,”
8aid an eminent historian, “ was daily furnished with the
most rare and costly delicacies, presented to him by
admirers.” The articles of food which arrived at the gaol
soon became a serious embarrassment. A piece of brawn,
a firkin of rock oysters, a Cheshire cheese, a loaf of sugar,
a brace of fat bucks, with turkeys, geese, and fowls, all
sorts of fish and every kind of fruit, in season and out —
these and similar 'commodities were delivered by the carrier
m careless profusion several times a week. On his forty-
* Public Advertiser, May 7, 1768 ; My Own Life and Times, Thomas
omerville, p. i6o ; The State of Prisons, John Howard, 243-4 : Bistory
01 burrey, T. AUen, i. 147-8 ; Old and New London, E. Walford, vi. 66-7 ;
unningham’s Handbook of London, ii. 458.
236 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,768^
third birthday the Chevalier d’Eon sent him a dozen smoked
Russian tongues, regretting that they had not "the elo-
quence of Cicero ” to " rejoice properly.” Often a letter
accompanied a particular present to intimate that it
weighed forty-five pounds. Even before the hero ha‘d
been elected an alderman a turtle was a favourite form of
gift with his wealthy admirers, and during the month after
his sentence had been pronounced he gave a " turtle feast ’’
on two occasions to “ persons of distinction.” A silver
medal, bearing his own portrait, was presented to him in
commemoration of the first Middlesex election. A massive
cup, worth a hundred pounds, was sent to him on his birth-
day. After he had been chosen by the ratepayers of Far-
ringdon Without, a generous disciple gave him an alderman's
gown that cost forty guineas. Before he had been in prison
for twelve months a newspaper paragraph estimated that
he had received presents to the value of £2000}
Bon vivant always, though never a glutton, Wilkes
revelled in the good cheer that was provided for him. Being
the most gregarious creature that ever lived, his room was
nearly always full of company, and he arranged a “ grand
entertainment ” for some congenial spirits at least once a
week. Yet he would not permit social amusements to
hinder his crusade. Although “hardly serious at first,”
in the opinion of Junius, “he was now an enthusiast.
His numerous manifestoes to the Middlesex electors shaped
the political creed of every devout Wilkite. Almost daily a
trenchant letter or a smart paragraph, written by his busy
pen, appeared in one of the newspapers, breathing define®
against the Government. A committee of his principal
supporters took counsel with him at frequent intervals to
direct the policy of their adherents. Bui while he
before the nation in his most dramatic guise, as the champwn
' Public Advertiser, *, i6, *3; Dec. 2, 1768: Jan. 3>
Feb. 2, 21 ; March 18 ; Aug. 7, 12, 21, 1769 ; Gentleman's Maga*i»* {i7W/>
p. 509 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, i. 111-12.
. 768 - 69 ] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON
237
of liberty and the martyr of freedom, the irrepressible
humour of the man kept bubbling forth from time to time,
and the scene was changed to one of farce or comedy. It
was his greatest misfortune that he could only remain
serious during limited periods.
It was a common thing for ladies in a delicate state of
health to be seized with an inordinate longing to gaze upon
the face of the captive patriot, and Wilkes with unfailing
good humour was always ready to indulge their fancy. One
day he was told that two curious gentlewomen were waiting
at the lodge, anxious to see him. Ordering them to be
shown up to his room he opened a bottle of wine, and when
his guests had arrived he asked them to drink the toast —
“ a safe and speedy delivery to the three of us.” ‘ Owing
mainly to his love of burlesque, anything droll or fantastic
relating to the popular leader was sure to find its way
into the newspapers. A sort of cabalistic humour was sup-
posed to be associated with the number 45. If these figures
were announced after a division a ripple of laughter would
pass over the benches of the House of Commons. It was
regarded as an amusing fact if 45 coaches drove in one day ^
to the King’s Bench prison, or when 45 tradesmen dined
together off 45 pounds of beef in a room lighted by 45
candles.® In one of his frolicsome moods the patriot had
the bad taste to send a superfluous turtle as a present to
the Princess Amelia, the aunt of the king.® During his
most serious moments a gibe was often on his lips. No
public man could pass from jest to earnest with more
rapidity.
A little later in his life he was scolded by Junius for
Mother frivolous habit. " I would not make myself
cheap,” wrote the Great Unknown, “ by walking the streets
so much as you do.” * At this period, though unable to
' Public Advertiser, 1768.
* PtU>Hc Advertiser, Nov. 3 and 7, 1769.
* Jownai of Lady Mary Coke, ii. 355-6.
* Letters of Jurtius (Bohn, 1908), ii. 95 *
238 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,76,
walk abroad, he was always ready to make himself cheap by
joining any club or community that asked for his patronage.
The Brotherhood of All Souls, the Society of Hiccobites,
the Noble Order of Free United Britons, the Honourable
and Ancient Society of Leeches, these and many other
similar associations enrolled him among their members.'
Undoubtedly, his willingness “ to be all things to all men ”
affected his prestige almost as much as his love of buffoonery.
Nearly everyone spoke of him affectionately, or refened
to him contemptuously, as Jack or Johnny Wilkes. The
familiarity that breeds contempt robbed him of the authority
that should distinguish a great statesman.
A group of new friends, more useful and zealous than
any political associates of former years, had now gathered
around him. Some of them came to sup or dine with him
in his luxurious cell at frequent intervals. John Home,
the maccaroni parson with one eye, who had reserved the
two best inns at Brentford in Wilkes’s interest during the
first Middlesex election at his own expense, continued to
be one of the most strenuous supporters of the popular
cause.® In a lordly, patronising way Alderman William
Beckford, the West India plutocrat, also allied himself with
the combative little band, affording valuable assistance
financially, and assisting in the battle in Parliament in his
bluff, ostentatious style. A person of rather more culture and
refinement, though inordinately ugly and an alderman too,
John Sawbridge by name, was at this period perhaps the
most enthusiastic among Wilkes’s lieutenants. Sprung
from an old county family living at Olantighe in Kent,
he was supposed to have learnt his political philosophy
from his sister, Mrs. Catherine Macaulay, who was the
authoress of an imaginative work in prafce of republican
‘ Public Advertiser, March 7, 22, 29 ; May 19, 1769. About this tuue
he became a Freemason. Mr. A. M. Broadley informs me that "
Wilkes was initiated on Feb. i8, 1769, in the Jerusalem Lodge at a meetng
for the purpose by dispensation in King’s Bench prison/'
* Life of John Horne Tooke, A. Stephens, i. 94.
,;rt8-7o] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON 239
principles under the title of a History of England. Rich,
honest, and indefatigable, he was a most valuable ally,
tliongh Wilkes, finding him much less pliable than he had
hoped, soon came to the conclusion that he had “ more
inj.ilishncss than understanding.” ^
Less tractable still, as his finn, rugged features indicated
plainly, Alderman James Townsend, who was sheriff along
with Sawbridge in the year 1769, had been the most resolute
supporter of Wilkes at each successive election, having been
threatened with expulsion, together with his colleague, for
nominating the demagogue after the House had declared
that he was not eligible. Robust and eloquent, with a
quick, hot temper and a fine courage, he revelled in the
battle between Parliament and the Middlesex electors,
showing himself as audacious as Wilkes in both word and
deed. Of decent birth, having the prestige of a University
education, a wealthy landowner and married to an heiress,
ht! was a useful friend to those who could manage to work
in harmony with him.* It was obvious, however, from the
first, that he and Wilkes could not run together in double
harness.
If Townsend was the Danton and Wilkes the Robespierre
fit the comiti de salut that met in the State-house of the
King’s Bench prison, Richard Oliver, soon also to be an
alderman, was its Marat. Born in a tropical land, the
nature of the man seemed as intemperate as the climate of
his birthplace, blazing at white heat both in his friendships
and his enmities. Black and swarthy, with sharp features
and thin cruel lips, the expression of his face was often
sinister and vindictive, and when once his indignation had
' Letters of Junius (Bohn), 1908, ii. 83 ; cf. Mems. of Lord Rockingham,
'' ; Life of J. Hprne Tooke, A. Stephens, ii. 282 ; Hist, and Post.
■ Lmoirs of N . Wraxall (Wheatley), iii. 423.
^ Memoirs of the Reign of George HI, H. Walpole, iii. 191 ; Life of Lord
„ E. Fitzmanrice, ii. 287-8 ; Citixens of London and their Rulers,
■ Oridge ; W. P. Courtney in Notes and Queries, nth series, v. 2-4 ;
50^8*”*”'* Magazine (1787), pp. 640, 738 ; London Magazine (1772),
240 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
been aroused it was impossible for him to forgive. Scru-
pulously honest, he was always moved to fierce anger by
any sign of meanness or guile, and he never feared to speak
his mind however great the cost. Like his cousin and
brother-in-law, Thomas Oliver, he was ambitious of ciyic
honours, and few London citizens were more liberal and
open-handed in their support of the patriotic cause.'
Another of Wilkes’s trusted advisers was an ex-chaplain
of George the Second, Dr. Thomas Wilson by name, rector
of St. Stephen’s, Walbrook, said to have been banished
from the chapel royal for gross flattery of the reigning
king. Though a man of character and intelligence, he made
himself a general laughing-stock by his absurd adoration of
Mrs. Macaulay, the female historian, to whom he erected
a statue in his church, and idolised as the greatest genius
of the age.® Several other old friends remained staunch
in their allegiance. John Churchill, the popular apothecary
of Westminster ; Joseph Mawbey, the owner of the dis-
tillery and the pigs ; poor Humphrey Cotes, who strove to
pull the wires as vigorously as ever, all acted as a sort of
general staff to the imprisoned demagogue, along with
Sawbridge, Townsend, Home, and Oliver. The pugilistic
John Reynolds, who had knocked Dingley down, continued
to be Wilkes’s legal adviser, with the occasional help of
Serjeant Glynn. Various members of the Common Council
of London, such as George Bellas of Doctor’s Commons,
Samuel Vaughan of Mincing Lane, and Arthur Beardmore,
Lord Temple’s solicitor, proved themselves as ardent and
as invaluable as any of the others.
At a meeting held at the London Tavern in Bishopsgate
Street on the 2oth of February 1769, the little band 0
stalwarts resolved to form a society in order to advance
* Mr. V. L. Oliver in Notes and Queries, 8th series, iv. *1? I
troversial Letters of Wilkes and Horne, pp. 141, 269, 291 ; ’’ ’
April 27, 1771 ; Nov. 5, 1772. u«tuiM’
* Toum and Country Magaxiney iii. 68i, viii. 675 ; EufOpi^^
iv. 332-4*
1/69]
A HOLIDAY IN PRISON
241
their political principles and to assist in the Wilkite crusade.
Five days later they christened themselves the Supporters
of the Bill of Rights, declaring that their sole aim was
" to maintain and defend the legal, constitutional liberty
of. the subject.” Previously, it had been agreed to “ con-
tribute as far as it lay in their power to the support of Mr.
Wilkes,” and a widespread appeal was made to the public
for subscriptions.^ Obviously, the first article in their creed
was the preservation of the freedom of parliamentary
election, as prescribed in King William’s famous statute,
which was considered to have been violated in the Middle-
sex election. Subscriptions poured into their coffers in a
steady copious stream. The rich merchants of London
gave generously, and contributions were received from all
parts of England. A wise appeal was made for popular
sympathy by representing the patriot as one who had
“ suffered very greatly in his private fortune from the severe
and repeated persecutions he has undergone on behalf of
the public.” It was urged in the preamble to the subscrip-
tion paper that " the man who suffers for the public good
should be supported by the public.” * So encouraging was
the response that his friends hoped to raise sufficient funds
to satisfy Wilkes’s creditors and to purchase him a substan-
tial annuity.*
Though Horne and his colleagues began their work
with easy confidence, they were soon dismayed by the
enormity of the task. Wilkes’s debts were unextinguish-
^ble. No sooner was one claimant appeased than a host
of others submitted their demands. In the month of
March it was estimated that the patriot owed about £14,000.
Early in June the sum had increased to over £17,000. With
bis two fines and the addition of election expenses, the total
U’ . , Letters of Wilkes and Horne ^ pp. 150-1, 170-2 ; Life of
* J. Almon, iv. 7-9 ; Life of /. Horne TookSy A. Stephens^ i, 162-4 I
lie Advertiser y Feb. 22 ; Gentleman* s Magazine (i769)» P* 108.
^ Lt/tf of Wilkesy J. Almon, iv. 8 ; London Magazine (1769), p. no.
of j, Horne ToohOy A. Stephens, i. 167-8,
Q
242 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,769
was raised to more than £21,000. Even then, bills to the
amount of £7000 remained unpaid. Since it was impos-
sible to discharge every debt in full the greater portion
were compounded, several private creditors being generous
enough to forgo a large part of their claims. And at the
same time that they were freeing him from his embarrass-
ments the Supporters of the Bill of Rights allowed Wilkes a
grant of a £1000 a year for his personal use. From first to
last it was calculated that the balance against him could
not have been less than £30,000. Altogether the subscrip-
tions received by the society only amounted to about two-
thirds of this sum.
It was alleged by his apologists that Wilkes had in-
curred £7000 of these debts by becoming security for
several of his friends, but they produced no evidence
to show that anyone except ladies of easy virtue had
profited by such generosity. The auditing of accormts dis-
closed many samples of reckless extravagance. More than
£1000 was owed to Parisian jewellers. Lauchlin Macleane
held a note of hand for £1200, advanced to save his friend
from bankruptcy during his residence in France. Between
four and five hundred pounds, borrowed at the same period,
was due to the house of Foley. Panchaud, another banker
in Paris, claimed £600. The pugilistic Reynolds had
allowed himself to be drawn upon for £1500. There was a
debt of £2000 contracted many years previously, owing to
Silva, the Jew, which had been reduced or compounded
— some said repudiated fraudulently — and Wilkes incurred
much odium thereby. It was discovered also that he owed
nearly £1000 to the Foundling Hospital at Aylesbury, the
money being in his hands as trustee when he fled from the
country after his duel with Martin. In "a similar manner
he had appropriated £800 belonging to the Buckinghamshire
Militia, but in both instances he pleaded that he had be®
obliged to leave his affairs in the hands of Humphrey
Cotes, whose failure had caused the suras to be I®'
.768] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON 243
Though not wilfully dishonest, Wilkes’s carelessness in money
matters was scarcely less reprehensible than fraud. Like
most professional demagogues, he considered himself entitled
to live at the public expense, in return for the benefits,
which, in his opinion, he conferred upon the people.
Greater statesmen than he have been equally slovenly in
keeping their accounts.*
Some of the most agreeable tributes to his popularity
at this period came from America. Ever since his imprison-
ment in the tower the colonists had taken a deep interest
in his struggle against the Government, amazed that one
man should be able to baffle all the resources of the Crown.
Having similar grievances of their own, they could not fail to
be gratified by the abolition of general warrants, and the
incidents of the Middlesex election must have suggested the
hope that the right of the people to elect those who were to
govern them would be recognised to the full in their own
states.* Since his brother-in-law, George Hayley, had a
business connection with Boston it is probable that Wilkes
was informed by American newspapers and American corres-
pondents of the enthusiasm that he had awakened in the *
colonies. He would learn that his name had become a
' Until the Minute Book of the Bill of Rights Society is examined no
complete balance sheet can be provided, setting forth the full details of
Wilkes’s debts. The reports of the secretary, published in the newspapers
and magazines, together with the statements of Almon, Horne, and Wilkes
inmself, give a broad impression of the amount of the liabilities. See the
numerous references in The Controversial Letters of Wilkes and Homey
Passim] Life of Horne Toohey A. Stephens, passim; Life of Wilkes,
]* Almon, iv. 7-13; Gentleman* s Magazine (1769), p. 316, (1771) p, 89;
Town and Country Magazine (1770), pp, 167, 221 ; London Magazine (1769),
P. 218, (1772) p. 142; Public Advertiser, June 21, 1769; Feb. 21 ; April
1770 ; Jan. 19, Feb. 23, May 7, June 18, Letters signed “ Menenius
June 21, 26, 29, 1771 ; March 4, Nov. 3, 1772; History of London, J,
^oorthonck, p. 479 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, i. ui ; Add. MSS,
5 °- 868 , ff. 27, 75, loi, 108, 112, 117, 149, 215 ; Add. MSS. 30,869, ff. 8, 21,
93 , 117, 129 ; Add. MSS. 30.872, ft, 109, 135 ; Add. MSS. 30.879, f. 162 ;
^^Ftfst Ambassador to China, H. M. Robins, 73.
History of America, J. Winsor, vi. ii 11. Cf. The Boston Gazette, July
4 . Aug. 29^ 1^53 , Boston Chronicle, June 29, 17^^
[1768
244 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
popular toast among all classes, and that the baptisms of
a number of little John Wilkes were recorded frequently,
it being a common custom to christen children after him.
The innumerable references in the leading journals must have
convinced him that he had as many sympathisers in America
as in England.
The first direct communication came to him from the
Committee of the Sons of Liberty at Boston, the title of
whose Society had been borrowed from an expression used
by Colonel Barrd in the House of Commons on the 5th of
February, 1765. It was signed by Benjamin Kent, Thomas
Young, Benjamin Church, junior, John Adams, and Joseph
Warren, and arrived at the King’s Bench prison about a
month after the patriot had received his sentence. It
offered congratulations on the result of the first Middlesex
election, and thanked him for his brave struggle in the
cause of freedom. Wilkes was much flattered by the atten-
tion, sitting down immediately to answer the letter, and
assuring the Sons of Liberty that the interests of America
should be “ the study of his life.” * Much correspondence
followed, the Committee sending three more elaborate
addresses to Wilkes during his imprisonment, and doing
him the honour of drinking his health on every 14th of
August when they assembled at Liberty Tree to celebrate
the day of the union.* Two of the numerous turtles were
sent by the same admiring friends. Yet, the enthusiasm
of Boston was far exceeded a little later by the people of
South Carolina, who contributed through their House of
Assembly a subscription of £1500 towards the payment of
the patriot’s debts.*
No events in England gave greater encouragement to
the militant party in the American colonies than the
achievements of John Wilkes. From first to last they
^ Controversial Letters of Wilkes and Horne^ p. 164. .
• Add. MSS. 30,870, ft, 73, 135, 222 ; Boston GasettSt Aug. 22, *7 '
Boston Chronicle t Aug. 21, 1769.
• Gentleman*s Magasine (1770), p, 94 ; Annual Register (I 77 ®)> P' ^ *
,769] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON 245
regarded his cause with as deep an interest as if it had
been their own. It was natural that they should sympathise
with the English rebel. The Parliament that proscribed
him was the same which imposed unwelcome taxation upon
themselves. George Grenville, his first persecutor, was the
author of the Stamp Act. The ministry of Grafton, which
had expelled him from the House of Commons, had been
more hostile to colonial aspirations than any of its pre-
decessors. In trying to vindicate the rights of the elec-
torate against the encroachments of the executive he was
fighting for a principle which all American patriots hoped
to see recognised in their own land. His numerous victories
on behalf of liberty served to remind every discontented
Yankee that they " who would be free themselves must
strike the blow." Perhaps, had they never been inspired
by his brave example, they might not have dared to break
their chains so soon.
The second birthday passed by Wilkes in prison, when
he entered into his forty-fifth year, was celebrated by his
admirers all over England with greater enthusiasm, but
was not marked by as much popular disturbance as the anni-
versary of the year previous had been.^ By now the excite-
ment of the Middlesex election had faded away, and with
a general increase of prosperity throughout the country the
old turbulent spirit in a great measure had disappeared.
Moreover, Wilkes’s " general staff ’’ set their faces sternly
against all forms of riot and disorder. A new method
Was discovered of showing disapproval of the Government
bombarding the king with petitions to dissolve Parlia-
"i^ont, the counties of Middlesex, Surrey, and Yorkshire,
"atb the cities of Bristol, Liverpool, and Newcastle, amongst
"^any others joining in the protest.
Although Grafton’s ministry was obviously moribund
the commencement of the New Year, Chatham, Shel-
’iJ'ne, and Camden, its three brightest stars, having de-
^ Pi^lic Advertiser, Oct. 30, Nov. 3, 1769.
246 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,770
serted in turn, George the Third would not consent to a
dissolution, declaring that he would prefer civil war rather
than yield.^ A heavy blow was delivered against the
Government and a great compliment paid to Wilkes at the
opening of the session by an amendment to the address,
moved by Lord Chatham, begging the House to “ take into
consideration the causes of the prevailing discontent and
particularly the proceedings of the House of Commons
touching the incapacity of John Wilkes.” * On the 27th of
January, 1770, weary of office, Grafton at last proffered his
resignation, which the king, who was glad to make a
change of ministers, accepted without demur. Grown tame
and impotent under the flabby leadership of Rockingham,
the Opposition was unable to offer any effective challenge
to their opponents, and a new administration was formed
by the king’s friends with Lord North as Prime Minister.
Its policy in all matters relating to the Middlesex election
was the same as that of its predecessor.
Nearly twenty months of Wilkes’s sentence had now
expired and only ten weeks more of imprisonment remained.
For some time the newspapers had begun to count the days
that must elapse before his enlargement. From the first
his health had been splendid, a bilious attack now and then
being his only ailment. Owing to lack of exercise and a
sumptuous fare his slim figure had increased somewhat m
bulk, a condition, so the wags declared, very suitable to a
city alderman. With his fellow-prisoners he was immensely
popular, being in the habit of distributing his superfluous
provisions amongst them all.® Presents continued to poof
in upon him to the end, and his friends flocked to his suppof
parties as eagerly as ever. Very frequently too his smart,
merry Polly, chaperoned by old grandmother Wilkes, would
* Memoirs of the Reign of George II J, H. Walpole, iv. 41. .. „
* Parliamentary History, xvi. 652 ; Chatham Correspondence, «*• 3
74 ; Letters of Eminent Persons to David Hume, pp.
* Public Advertiser^ Jan. xo, Feb. lo, June ib, 1769.
,768-70] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON 247
pay him a visit, with a laugh and a look of love for every
word that he spoke.
Ladies often came to call upon him, both singly and in
company, the prison regulations placing no restrictions
upon their admittance, and all the pretty ones were sure to
receive an invitation to come again. With one of his fair
visitors, Mary Otto by name, Wilkes became much infatu-
ated, entreating her to visit him alone, and striving without
effect to persuade her to leave her protector.* Another of
his lady friends, although a married woman, was more
complaisant. Mrs. John Barnard, the wife of the son of a
famous alderman of London, was in the habit of coming to
see him in company with her husband, who was a warm
supporter of the patriotic cause, and occasionally, for she
had been Wilkes’s mistress before her marriage, she used
to come alone. Although Mr. Barnard was one of his best
and most generous friends, the amorous patriot sighed after
his former love still, hoping to renew their tender relations
again. Many affectionate letters passed between the two,
and the clandestine interviews took place as often as they
dared, but no suspicion of the truth ever crossed the hus-^
band’s mind. He would have as soon expected such an
injury from a brother.*
In spite of Wilkes’s extravagance his fortune had been
little impaired during his exile. By living on credit, with
the help of loans from his friends, it had been unnecessary
to dip into capital any further. Since the Supporters of
the Bill of Rights had volunteered to discharge his debts
there was no need to realise other portions of his estate.
At the end of his imprisonment his income was not much
less than it had been when he fled from his native land.
After all deductions it amounted to about £350, in spite
of the rapacity of Reynolds, his addle-pated solicitor. A
' Add. MS. 30,875, f. 234. C/. Wilkes's Address Book, Add. MSS,
30,892.
* Add. MS. 30,880 B., f. 48 and passim.
248 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES t«77o
few months before his release a windfall of £4000 had come
to him, awarded by the jury that tried his long-protracted
law-suit against Lord Halifax, a welcome sum, though he
had claimed five times as much, for it enabled him to pay
off the old debt to the Buckinghamshire militia. With the
annuity of jfiooo, granted by the Bill of Rights enthusiasts,
the debtor was in affluent circumstances.*
Wilkes was released from prison on the evening of
Tuesday the 17th of April, 1770. To divert the attention of
the crowd Miss Wilkes drove out in a coach first with a male
friend, and, while the mob was closing around the vehicle
in the belief that their idol was inside, he was hurried away
in a chaise and four in the opposite direction. The ruse failed,
though the postillions drove as fast as they could. Before
the windmill in Blackman Street was reached the carriage
was blocked by the crowd, hundreds of jubilant souls
having caught a glimpse of the familiar face gritming and
squinting behind the glass pane, and Wilkes was forced to
use all his powers of cajolery to dissuade the people from
drawing him in triumph through the town. At length
after a long parley he prevailed upon his admirers to let
him depart in peace, and he proceeded with his com-
panions, Messrs. Churchill and Trevanion, without any
further adventure to the country house of his solicitor,
near Bromley in Kent.*
' On the following morning he published a new address
to the freeholders of Middlesex. Though he realised well
enough that his imprisonment had been no hardship, h®
referred to his " sufferings of the last two years.” Wt
unconscious humour he declared that " the trial was indee
long and severe ” and spoke pathetically of " the many
tedious months of his long confinement,” unmindful of t e
feasting and carousals and the visits of fair dames. One®
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 13 ; Memoies of the Reign of Gemgt
H. Walpole, iii. 263 ; Controoersi<U Letters between Wilkes ani Hww, ^ '
• Public Advertiser, April 19, J 770 '• Wilkes’s Diary, Add. MSS. 30-
,770] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON 249
more he reminded his supporters of the general warrant,
and denounced " the horrid massacre ” in St. George’s
Fields. He inveighed against the House of Commons for
its decision in the Middlesex election ; he protested that it
was " no longer a just and fair representative of the collec-
tive body of all the electors,” and he clamoured for the
dismissal of the " corrupt and despotic administration.”
It was a brave and forcible outburst in the true Wilkes
style.*
The release of the famous prisoner was celebrated all
over the country either on the Tuesday or the Wednesday
evening. London was ablaze with light, the houses of
William Beckford and the Duke of Portland being the
most brilliant of any, but owing to a downpour of rain and
the presence of troops there was no rioting. Illuminations
were general in the provinces, with fireworks, bonfires, and
ringing of bells. Numerous parties of forty-five sat down
to joyful symposiums, and hogsheads of ale were given away
to the people. In a western town Colonel Luttrell was
hung in effigy in the market-place. America, too, made the
day a day of festival. The union flag was displayed on
Liberty Tree amidst the cheers of a great crowd, and at a
banquet in Boston the health of ” the illustrious martyr
to liberty ” was the first on the list of toasts.*
A week after his release Wilkes attended his first public
function, appearing at the Guildhall to be " sworn in ”
as an alderman. " The greatest concourse ever known on
a like occasion " gave him an uproarious welcome into the
’^>ty, and he noted with amusement that even the most
hostile of his brother aldermen received him with apparent
cordiality. After the ceremony he was driven in the state-
•
North Briton (W. Bingley), vol. ii., Part I, p. 378; Public Ad-
April 18, 1770.
PMc Advertiser, April 19, 23, 28, May 2, 1770 ; Town and Country
ii. 221 ; London Magcuine, p. 219 ; Hist MSS. Com., loth
I, 423 ; Life of H. Grattan, i. 163 ; Letters of H*
® pole (Toynbee), vii. 375 ; Boston Gasette, April 23, 1770,
250 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.7;o
coach to the Mansion House, where a splendid banquet
was held in his honour by Lord Mayor Beckiord. The
patriot, who was dressed in a full-trimmed suit of black,
bore himself in regal style, and was obviously gratified by
the warmth of his reception. No such crowd had been seen
in the streets since the coronation.*
A week later he was the subject of a historic debate in
the Upper House, Lord Chatham presenting a bill "for
reversing the adjudications of the House of Commons,
whereby John Wilkes, Esq., has been judged incapable of
being elected a member to serve in the present Parliament.”
Though the old statesman had no desire for an alliance with
the demagogue, either personal or political, he had become
one of his most strenuous advocates in the question of the
Middlesex election. On the present occasion his speech
was described by Wilkes himself as a great one. " Here
are 1143 legal, sworn freeholders,” he declared, “ who vote
a gentleman their member of Parliament against 296 who
oppose him. With this apparent majority he comes to
take his seat so given him by the laws and constitution of
his country. But what do the House of Commons ? Why,
they shut the door in his face, and, by a new state-arith-
metic, make 296 a greater number than 1143. Is not this,
my lords, flying in the face of all law and freedom ? ” The
task of replying for the Government devolved upon Lord
Mansfield, who argued that since " Mr. Wilkes was a nobody
in the eyes of the law, therefore Colonel Luttrell had no
opposition,” and the bill was thrown out by a majority of
forty-six. Thirty-three of the peers, headed by Chathaffli
Camden, and Rockingham, adopted the rmusual course of
Mgning a protest against the rejection.*
On the 23rd of the month one of Lord Chatham’s most
loyal followers, inspired by the example of his leader,
» PMie Advertisn', April 25 and 27 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Alino»»
• Chatham Correspondencey iiu 1 Mems.o/LordRochinfhanh^^'
Parliamentary History y xvi, 955 “^ 5 1 ^* 7 * Mansfieldy J» Ho* ’
p. 272.
,770] A HOLIDAY IN PRISON 251
ventured to offer a public protest against the Middlesex
election at the steps of the throne. It was on the occasion
when the second “Address, Remonstrance, and Petition”
from the City of London was presented at St. James’s
Palace, and the intrepid politician was William Beckford.
After the king had made an evasive reply in answer to the
protest of the Common Council, the Lord Mayor stepped
forward and delivered a speech. It was a loyal and respect-
ful oration, but entirely out of order and unprecedented,
and its whole purport was to emphasise the fact that the
mercantile class was bitterly hostile to his Majesty’s
Government.^
Neither the eloquence of the great statesmen nor the
audacity of the rich and popular Lord Mayor could pre-
vail upon George the Third to reopen the question of the
Middlesex election. So far he had gained a decisive victory.
ITic agitation in favour of Wilkes had spent its force, and
although the demagogue remained as popular as ever, it was
manifest that his political influence would grow no greater
than it had been. Having realised that nothing but civil
war could turn Colonel Luttrell out of his seat, the zeal of
hundreds of sturdy Wilkites had oozed away. The patriot
too seemed content to rest upon his laurels, devoting his
energies to make himself the autocrat of the city. The
king, however, had merely crushed his enemies for the
moment, but it is scarcely probable that the pleasure of his
triumph was disturbed by the knowledge that the Middlesex
election had kindled a flame which he would never be able
to beat out.
' Public Advertiser, May 24 and 25, 1770 ; London and the Kingdom,
“• R. Sharpe, iii, 101-2.
CHAPTER XV
THE SHRIEVALTY
1770-1772
W ILKES’S first task after leaving prison was to
find a suitable residence for his daughter and
himself. Having £ 4^00 in ready cash and a
yearly income of nearly £1400, there was no
reason why he should remain in his old lodgings at Mrs.
Henley s. A few days after his release, with characteristic
unselfishness, he allowed Polly to pay a visit to* Paris, at
the iiivitation of Madame de Chantereine, in order that
she might see the Dauphin’s wedding, so his house-hunting
had to be done alone. Wishing to live near his old home,
he secured a lease of No. 7 Prince’s Court, the last house at
the end of Great George Street, by Storey’s Gate, with its
windows facing Birdcage Walk, paying the moderate rent
of fifty guineas a year. At the same time, deeming it
necessary to have a country cottage during the summer
months, he took a furnished villa in Elysium Row, Fulham.*
For a short period he hesitated to devote himself
seriously to civic affairs, feeling instinctively that he would
be out of his element. I am determined not to be sheriff
unless Parliament be dissolved before midsummer,” he
informed his daughter soon after he had made his dftut
in the Guildhall, wisely regarding the shrievalty as a matter
of minor consequence. At that moment?, however, there
1 Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 25, 31-2 ; Controversial Letters between
Wilkes and Horne, pp. 176, 191-2; Memorials of Westminster, M. E. C.
Walcott, p. 73 ; J. Dixon in Notes and Queries, 5th series, xii. 513 J Pnbl*^
Advertiser, May 12, l^^o^ His house in Fulham was known as the Bslcoey
House.
THE SHRIEVALTY
i;;o]
253
was no other career to occupy his restless energy, and it
seemed probable that the Government would remain in
office for another five years. Fearing, perhaps, that he might
fall into obscurity, he allowed his new friends to persuade
him to join in the struggle against the court party in the
city. It was a fall as stupendous as that of Lucifer ! In
descending from imperial to local politics, Wilkes found
himself involved in a hundred petty squabbles and ignoble
jealousies with which he need have had no concern. Men
like Sawbridge, Townsend, and Oliver, to whom he was
immeasurably superior in wisdom and intelligence, would
have accepted him as their political leader without question
instead of regarding him as an unwelcome rival, had he not
invaded their own special domain. It was a tactical error
of the greatest magnitude and the only one that Wilkes
ever made.
From the onset he plunged into his new life with
characteristic impetuosity. In his letters to his daughter
there were constant references to the sessions at Guildhall
and the meetings of the Common Council, and he related
how he had been “ sitting in the seat of justice for the lord-
mayor ” at the Mansion House.^ At the Court of Aldermen
he was always in his place. Civic business monopolised the
whole of his working day. With the exception, too, of his
weekly visits to the Beef Steak Club most of his social
engagements were connected with his municipal work.
When public banquets did not claim his presence he was
always a welcome guest at the table of one of his city
friends. In a diary that he kept at this period he duly
recorded each place where he dined.*
Though all were proud to sit at dinner vnth the famous
wit, many a distinguished merchant had cause to remember
i'is bitter tongue ; for he loved to aim his shafts at alder-
"'en and common-councillors. At a Lord Mayor’s dinner
* Life of Wilkes, J. Atmon, Iv. 30, 59, 6a.
' Add. MSS. 30,866 passim.
254 life of JOHN WILKES [1770-73
one afternoon he observed a certain civic dignitary, who
had begun life as a bricklayer, helping himself plentifully
to the cheese.
" Why, Mr. Burnel,” said Wilkes, " you lay it on with
a trowel.” *
On another occasion at a city banquet a vulgar deputy,-
who was in the habit of taking off his wig and dining in a
night-cap, asked the demagogue if his head-gear became
him.
" Oh yes, sir,” was the answer, ” but it would look
much better if it were pulled quite over your face.” *
Once a dispute arose between Wilkes and the councillors
of Farringdon Without on a question of policy.
" Well, Mr. Wilkes,” said one of them, “ we must take
the sense of the ward.”
" With all my heart,” the alderman retorted scornfully,
" and I will take the non-sense and beat you ten to one." ®
When dining one day with a friend at the King’s Head
chop-house he was annoyed by an ostentatious citizen,
who kept on bawling for his steak.
“ See the difference between the city and the bear-
garden,” sneered Wilkes ; “ there the bear is brought to the
stake, but here the steak is brought to the bear.” *
A foolish young common-councilman happened to
observe that it was a singular fact that he should have
been born between twelve and one o’clock on the ist of
January.
” Not at all,” snapped Wilkes, “ considering that you
must have been begotten on the ist of April.” ‘
Sir Watkin Lewis, one of the most loyal of his Iwother
aldermen, losing patience at last with his domineering leader,
declared in a rage, “ I’ll be your butt no Ipnger.”
‘ Rems, of H. Angelo (1904), K 46 ; The Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, u- •
» The Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, ii. 6.
» Gentleman’s Magasine (1820), Part I, 6.
‘ The Olio, Francis Grose, p. 187.
» European Magazine, xxxiii. 227,
THE SHRIEVALTY
1770]
255
" With all my heart,” said Wilkes ; ” I never like an
empty one.” ^
Often some of his intimates, like John Churchill or
Humphrey Cotes, made a point of remonstrating with him
upon his rudeness to his city colleagues, asking if he were
not afraid of losing his friends.
“Friends!” cried Wilkes, “these fellows are my fol-
lowers, and they are now somebody. But they very well
know what they would be were they once out of my
suite.” *
It was in this spirit that he behaved and talked at
Guildhall and the Mansion House, seldom choosing to dis-
guise his contempt for his fellow citizens. And, although
he was good-humoured always, even when his gibes were
most keen, it was inevitable that his wit should cost him
many an adherent.
Having lived the busy life of an alderman for three
months, Wilkes left London for the holiday tour which he
was in the habit of making at this time of the year. Polly
returned from France to accompany him, and he was
waiting at Dover to welcome her when she stepped off the
packet on the- 3rd of August, overjoyed to have her back
again after her long absence.* A triumphal progress fol-
lowed, the demagogue receiving a royal reception in every
town through which he passed. At Canterbury, at Maid-
stone, and at Tunbridge Wells the people made high holiday
as long as he stayed amongst them. Colours decked the
streets, the church bells were set ringing, and cannon
thundered his usual salute of forty-five guns. During a
short visit to Alderman Sawbridge at Olantighe the most
reputable of Wilkites were summoned to meet him, and all
howed down and worshipped the honoured guest. It was
the same in Brighton, which from this time onward became
‘ Morning Post, July 30, 1775 ; Europtan Magarine, xxxiii. 227
of My Life, J. Taylor, i. 113.
, ^^fopean Magaxine, xxxiii. 225.
WUkes’s Diary, Add. MSS.|30,866.
256 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES (,770
one of his favourite haunts,* " all degrees of people treating
him with the greatest marks of respect." When he re-
turned to London at the end of his holiday he had good
reason to be proud of his popularity in the south-eastern
counties.* For many a long year the news that Mr. Wilkes
was coming would excite the inhabitants of a country town,
as much as the promise of a circus.
During the month of October he was engaged in a
fresh skirmish with the Government. One day, while
acting as sitting alderman at Guildhall, a journeyman
barber named John Shine was brought before him. Sailors
were wanted in the fleet, and the man had been seized
by virtue of a warrant from the Lords of the Admiralty,
ordering " seamen and seafaring men to be impressed."
Although the warrant was backed by the Lord Mayor, Wilkes
declared that “ pressing ” was illegal within the liberties
of the city, and without inquiring whether Shine had ever
been a seaman he ordered him to be discharged. A great
hubbub arose, and for a time it seemed as though Press
Warrants were destined to cause as much trouble as
General Warrants had done previously, for numbers of
sailors were released by other aldermen. • The people,
however, were filled with martial ardour, public opinion
by no means supporting the conduct of the demagogue.
Finally the case was submitted to Messrs. Dunning, Glynn,
and Wedderbum, whose report was entirely hostile to the
Wilkes doctrine. The ministers, nevertheless, made no
attempt to punish him for his audacity.*
At the end of the same month a dispute arose between
Wilkes and Sawbridge, the first of a long series of dis^'
sions that soon divided the popular party in the dty info
•
» “ Wilkes at Brighton/* Dutton Cooke in Belgravia, xxvii. 295*
• Public Advertiser, Aug. i6, 21, 22, 23, 24, 23, 28 ; Sept. 3, 177^*
• Public Advertiser, Oct. 26, 29, Nov. 24, 26, 1770^ Nov. 25, *77 •
Gentleman* s Magasine (i77o)» P* 4^4 1 London Magasine (177®)*
Memoirs of the Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iv. I2i, 13* \
Charles Butler, 1. 68.
.;70] THE SHRIEVALTY 257
two hostile factions. It occurred at a great meeting of
malcontents held at Westminster Hall for the purpose of
making inflammatory speeches against the Government.
Wilkes, who was chosen to preside, proved an inefficient
chairman, being inaudible to the majority of the vast
assemblage, and one of the audience, " with a voice as loud
as a speaking trumpet," had to interpret the motion which
the patriot had proposed. The meeting, moreover, thought
that his proposals were futile, for he clamoured wildly for
the impeachment of the Prime Minister, and a resolution
in favour of a new Remonstrance to the King, moved by
Alderman Sawbridge, was carried instead. It was a blow
to the prestige of Wilkes, teaching the envious city magnates
that he was not omnipotent, and might be opposed success-
fully by those who had the courage. With the multitude,
however, his popularity was undimmed. By a clever
explanation of his defeat he was able to depreciate the
triumph of his enemies.
“ I have a real pleasure," he declared, " in finding out
and following the opinion of the people. ... I firmly and
sincerely believe the voice of the people to be the voice of
God. I wish* always to hear it clear and distinct. When I
do I will obey it as a divine call." *
Though Wilkes was anxious to prevent a breach of
friendship with the opulent Sawbridge, there was never the
same cordiality between them after their disagreement in
Westminster Hall. The autocratic John was soon on bad
terms also with several of his brother aldermen, and letters
in the newspapers from impulsive partisans added fuel to
the flames. Fierce disputes broke out amongst the Sup-
porters of the Bill of Rights, the weary task of grappling
with kaleidoscopic balance-sheets trying the temper of many
who were not renowned for amiability at the best of times.
Alderman Townsend, stubborn in every way as Wilkes
himself, objected to the payment of a recent debt amount-
> PtAlic Advertiser, Nov. i, 2, 10, 1770.
258 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.77,
ing to £1000, and the patriot retaliated by accusing his
colleague of keeping out of the way on purpose while other
magistrates were challenging the Press Warrants.^ Since
Sawbridge and Townsend were the closest allies this latest
quarrel widened the schism among the patriots.
About the same time the volatile Parson Horne joined
the mutineers, furious that Wilkes should regard himself
as the dictator instead of the humble obedient servant of
the Supporters of the Bill of Rights. When he founded
the Association he did not expect that it would devote
itself solely to the interests of one man, aspiring to make
it a general benefit society for the aid of all political martyrs.
Wilkes, on the other hand, knowing full well that his
personal magnetism had attracted every farthing that had
been subscribed, was disgusted that a portion of the funds
should be diverted from his pocket. The rupture was
aggravated by the letters of several anonymous corres-
pondents, supposed to have been prompted by Wilkes him-
self, who insinuated in the newspapers that the Brentford
parson had stolen some of the donations. Glynn and Oliver
hastened to protest that the charges were preposterous, and
though taking no further part in the quarrel their sym-
pathies obviously were on the side of Home. It was
fortunate for Wilkes, in this rebellion of his most valuable
supporters, that he still had comrades like Churchill, Cotes,
and Wilson, who believed that he could do no wrong.*
By way of interlude he was engaged at the same moment
in a fierce fracas with his old friend Lauchlin Macleane, who
had sent to demand the repayment of an ancient debt.
Believing that he had been basely deserted by this man,
just as he had been deserted by William Fitzherbert,
owing to political exigencies, Wilkes had held no com*
munication with him for several years. There was a
' Public Advertiser, Jan. 19, 21, 1771,
• Life of Horne Tooke, A. Stevens, i. 168-79: Controversia Lem‘
between Wilkes and Horne, pp. 1-25 ; Public Advertiser, Jan. 17, *8, 177 *-
THE SHRIEVALTY
I 77 <]
259
certain significance in the quarrel, since Lauchlin Macleane,
like Alderman Townsend, belonged to a small faction led
by Lord Shelburne, who after disapproving of the minis-
terial prosecution of Wilkes from first to last, now regarded
the demagogue as an unnecessary evil, who ought to be
driven from political life. Long before, Wilkes had given
the earl his nickname of Malagrida, thinking him as crafty
and subtle as a Jesuit priest, and he believed that the
influence of the Shelburne coterie was directed against
him in all his works.^
A journey to the eastern counties in the month of
February came as a welcome relaxation in these troublous
times. The town of Lynn in Norfolk had invited him to
receive the freedom of the corporation, prompted no doubt
by his friend Crisp Molineux of Garboldisham, a genial old
rascal, who had contested the borough unsuccessfully at
the previous election. Although the convivial Crisp, in-
valided by an attack of gout, was unable to be present, the
function was a complete success, the enthusiasm of the
people and the splendour of the entertainment surpassing ^
all expectations. East Anglia was one of Wilkes’s great
strongholds. * During this journey he spent one night at
Upwell, near Wisbech, with Francis Dixon, the tenant of
one of his few remaining farms, paying a visit also to
Cambridge in spite of the snow, where he stayed at the
Rose Inn for three days. On Sunday evening he attended
Trinity College chapel. The anthem was from the Ii6th
Psalm : “lam well pleased that the Lord hath heard the
voice of my prayer.” After the service an admiring under-
graduate presented him with the book of anthems, mur-
oiuring with enthusiasm, " I am well pleased.” And
Wilkes handed dn the gift to a pretty woman near him,
g ‘ Public Advertissr, Jan, 29, 30 ; Feb, i, 2, 4, 1771 ; Add, MSS. 30.871,
• 56, 57 ; Notts and Queries, ist Series, iii. 378, viii. 619 ; Papers of a
Jiiic, C. W. Dilke, ii. 38-9 ; Life of Goldsmith, J. Prior, 1 . 149-52 : Works
> "Ugh Boyd, L. D, Campbell, p. 19; Letters of Junius (Bohn, 1908),
'• 77 . ii. 347 - 8 .
26o life of JOHN WILKES [177.
much gratified to find that he had found favour with many
junior members of a great university.*
Two days after his return to London a plot that he
had laid to embroil the House of Commons with the city of
London suddenly came to a head. For some time he had
been encouraging the newspaper proprietors in the forbidden
practice of publishing parliamentary debates, promising
the protection of the magistrates in case of prosecution.
On the 19th of February, Colonel George Onslow, member
for Guildford — a cousin of the other George Onslow, Wilkes’s
renegade friend — ^made a complaint to the House of Com-
mons that the publishers of The Gazetteer and The Middlesex
Journal had misrepresented the speeches of members, and
the offenders were ordered to attend at the bar. On the
advice of Wilkes both of them ignored the summons.
Thirsting for vengeance, Onslow moved an address to the
king to issue a proclamation, offering a reward to any
person who should arrest the two men, and unfortunately
for the dignity of the House the resolution was carried into
effect.’
On the next morning, when the proclamation appeared
in the London Gazette, Wilkes realised that chance had
given him the opportunity of making the British Parlia-
ment the laughing-stock of Europe. The audacity of the
scheme would have daunted anyone else. Instructed by
the demagogue, John Wheble of the Middlesex Journal got
himself arrested, as the royal proclamation had ordained,
but it was the printer’s own devil that arrested him, and
he was brought to the Guildhall on a day when Wilkes
happened to be the sitting magistrate. With mock gravity
the alderman pronounced judgment, declaring that, as there
» Public Advertiser, Feb. i8, 20, 1771 : Life of Wilkes, J. ‘J‘
81-4 ; cf. History of Lyutt, W. Richards, ii. 946. 953-4 : .
Obituary, iv. ai2 ; MSS. of Major G. F. Molineux-Montgomene, Crarw
sham Old Hall, Norfolk. ,
• Cavendish's Debates, ii. pp. 3**. 3ai : History of Eftgian»> J
Adolphus, i. 484-5.
26i
,77>] THE SHRIEVALTY
was no reason to apprehend Mr. Wheble except for the
oliences alleged in the proclamation, he must be set at
liberty, and that the man who had arrested him would
be charged with assault and unlawful imprisonment. In
©rdcr to emphasise his defiance of Parliament, Wilkes sent
a letter to the Secretary of State, avowing that he had re-
leased the journalist, who was a freeman of London, because
there was no " legal cause of complaint against him.” And
as a parting shot he sent the printer’s devil to claim the
reward of £50 offered by the Treasury for the apprehension
of his master. At a single stroke he had declared war on
behalf of the city against both Parliament and the King.*
On the same evening, John Miller of the London Evening
Post brought one of the messengers of the House of
Commons to the Mansion House in the custody of a con-
stable, complaining that the said messenger had endeavoured
to arrest him under the authority of a warrant from the
Speaker. The incident having been expected. Miller had
been rehearsed in his part by the same wily strategist who
had instructed Wheble, and the disputants were brought
immediately before Brass Crosby, the Lord Mayor, even*
though he Was in bed with gout. Naturally, Wilkes was
at his lordship’s elbow, and Richard Oliver also had the
good fortune to be present, so the three magistrates were
jointly responsible for the plan of campaign. It lacked
nothing in boldness. The Lord Mayor denied the authority
of Parliament to apprehend a citizen of London, declaring
the Speaker’s warrant to be absolutely illegal, and in order
to teach the House of Commons a salutary lesson he com-
mitted their messenger to prison for assault. It gave the
Deputy Sergeant-at-Arms much trouble to get the man
released on baik*
' Public Advertiser, March i6, 1771 ; Chatham Correspondence, iv. 115 ;
Walpole's Letters (Toynbee), viii. 17 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, v. 52-60 ;
London and the Kingdom, R. R. Sharpe, iii. 108-9.
* Life of J, Horne Tooke, i. 337 ; Memoirs of the Reign of George III,
Walpole, iv, 191 ; Public Advertiser, March 16, 18.
262
[‘771
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Smarting under a double affront, the punishment of
their officer and the repudiation of their warrant, all parties
in the House of Commons were agreed that an effort must
be made to retain their dignity. A resolution was passed
ordering the three magistrates to attend on the following
day. Revelling in his sudden notoriety, the saturnine
Oliver rose immediately in his place and acknowledged that
he had helped to send the messenger to gaol. Swathed
in flannels, for gout still racked his limbs, the invalid Crosby
delivered an address upon the obligations of the mayoralty,
being inspired by Wilkes in all his words and works, for,
true to his bluff bulldog exterior, he was a swashbuckler
and nothing more. In the end both offenders were sent
to the Tower, where they remained for several weeks as
prisoners of the House of Commons.
Since the Middlesex election no political event aroused
so great a clamour. The citizens of London showed their
approval of their magistrates with tempestuous enthusiasm.
All the town rang with the cry of " Crosby, Wilkes, and
Oliver, and the liberty of the Press.” In a fierce riot in
the streets of Westminster several members of Parliament
were stoned and beaten. The Court of Comrtion Council
voted its thanks to the three aldermen. Huge mobs
followed the Lord Mayor and his colleagues whenever they
appeared in public, and escorted them in triumph to the
Tower. A crowd of friends flocked to visit them in prison.
Although there was no irresolution in its dealings with
Oliver and Crosby, the House of Commons did not venture
upon another trial of strength with John Wilkes. Even
George the Third took the precaution at an early date to tell
Lord North that his enemy was " below the notice of the
House.” When he received the order conunanding his
attendance, Wilkes declined to obey the summons unless
he were allowed " to attend in his place ” as a member of
Parliament, and after the injunction had been repeated
twice the matter was allowed to rest. In a vain attempt
.;7I] THE SHRIEVALTY 263
to save itself from humiliation the House adopted the
subterfuge of adjourning for the day on which it had
summoned the demagogue to attend for the third time.
Mirahile dictu, this policy was advised by the king, who
protested that he would have " nothing more to do with that
devil Wilkes.” ^
The victory of the popular party was a notable one.
It was one of the greatest of Wilkes’s numerous triumphs.
Although Parson Home, who thought himself the insti-
gator of every ingenious manoeuvre, claimed the strategy
as his own, no one but the alderman of Farringdon Without
could have brought it to a successful issue. Both Sawbridge
and Townsend were daunted by the audacity of the plot,
the latter suggesting that it was best to wait for “ the
protection of some great man.” A mere device, perhaps,
in its first inception to cause a quarrel between the city and
the House of Commons, it proved to be the most conspicu-
ous incident in the history of the freedom of the Press.
Henceforth, with a few occasional interruptions, the news-
papers were allowed to publish parliamentary debates,
and the nation continued to enjoy the privilege of obtaining*
a daily report of the deliberations of its representatives.
The silver cup, given to Wilkes by the corporation of
London as a thank-offering for this great achievement,
although a source of infinite raillery on the part of his
enemies, was merited far more truly than any similar present.®
Of all his colleagues at this period one man especially
seemed bound to Wilkes by infinite obligations. Owing
to his association with the patriot, Richard Oliver had
emerged from obscurity to become one of the most famous
naen of the day. It seemed a favourable moment to test
bis gratitude, and while he was in prison Wilkes made the
^ Memoirs of Lord Rockingham, ii. 205-6 ; Chatham Correspondence , iv.
*2.3; Correspondence of George III with Lord Norths i. 64 ; Life of Wilkes ^
• Fitzgerald, ii, 166-86; Public Advertiser, March, 22, 23, 23, 27, 28, 29,
Vil I, 9. 1771.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, v. 63-4.
264 life of JOHN WILKES f?;.
request that he should become his colleague in the shrievalty
for the ensuing year. To his great vexation Oliver refused
peremptorily.
" I am determined not to serve the office of sheriff with
you,’’ he wrote from the Tower, " because I really do not
think from your own declarations that your political aims
are similar to mine.”
It was easy to read between the lines. Being acquainted
with Wilkes’s methods of finance the writer believed that
the patriot's colleague would be required to pay the ex-
penses of both. Belonging also, like Townsend, to “the
Malagrida crew,” he was influenced by Lord Shelburne’s
attitude towards city politics. Under the influence of
Parson Home he was anxious to sever his connection with
Wilkes altogether.!
A month later, the Brentford clergyman revealed to the
world in a letter to the Public Advertiser that his former
friend had become his bitterest foe. Putting forth all his
power, and in language of the most virulent abuse, he did
his utmost to damage Wilkes’s character, the newspaper
for the next two months being filled with his correspondence.
Commencing by charging his enemy with stealing the clothes
that he had left in his care at Paris — the uncanonical suits
of scarlet and gold and white and silver— he repeated all
the ancient innuendoes of the past ten years. Once more
Wilkes was accused of embezzling the funds of the Found-
ling Hospital, of committing a breach of trust towards the
Buckinghamshire militia, of cheating Silva, the Jew, and
swindling the French jewellers. Each debt and each
extravagance was specified and exaggerated with unscrupu-
lous malice. The rent of his house was divulged and the
number of his servants. In all manner of ways he was
pilloried as a spendthrift and a profligate.
Wilkes strove to palliate every attack, returning blow
for blow in fierce earnest. Being on the defensive lus
' Add. MS. 30,871, ft. 74-5 ; Public Advertiser, April 13, i6i
THE SHRIEVALTY
177O
265
letters were not disfigured by the same irrelevant persona-
lities as those of his foe. Keeping his temper under better
control his wit occasionally sparkles brightly. Aware that
the sympathies of the public were on his side it was easier
fc^ him to make some show of dignity. It was acknowledged
tod by most that he defeated his antagonist, emerging
from the paper warfare more popular with the masses
than ever, little out of favour also with the better folk,
who had known the worst of him long ago. The British
public on the whole, with its innate love of fair play, was
shocked by the style of the controversy, being of the opinion
that Horne was hitting below the belt all the time. In
the end Wilkes suffered little harm from the affray. When-
ever he lost a valuable adherent he could always find
another to supply his place.*
The chief result of the quarrel between Wilkes and
Home was a great schism among the Supporters of the
Bill of Rights. A number of the leaders, including
Sawbridge, Oliver, and Townsend, resigned their member-
Bhip, and assisted the revengeful cleric to found a rival
club under the title of the Constitutional Society. It was
a grievous Mow to the parent association, but Churchill,
Mawbey, and Dr. Wilson remained firm in their allegiance
and piloted it through the storm. Bulldog Crosby, also,
who had married in succession three wealthy widows, was
a source of great financial strength, attaching himself to
Wilkes with canine fidelity, always ready to growl or to
holic as his master bade him.*
In spite of the machinations of the Shelburne faction
Wilkes and Wilkes's nominee were chosen sheriffs by a
d^'Cisivc majority. By making frantic efforts to secure his
defeat, the Government also did him the utmost service,
interference causing many of the voters to pass over
I Controversial Letters of Wilkes and Horne ; Life of J, Horne Tooke^
* • Stephens, i. 176-319 ; The Public Advertiser^ May and June, 1771.
Town and Country Magasine^ iii. 221, 276 ; Lady's Magazine (1771),
PP- 428, 476 ; Public Advertiser^ April ii, 18, 1771.
266
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES f?;.
to his side. Richard Oliver, diminutive and refined, was
his principal opponent, too lacking in vigour to make a
popular candidate, being handicapped moreover by having
“ a ministerial alderman ” as his colleague. It was futile
to pit him against the formidable demagogue, and before
the books were opened it was evident that he would b6 at
the bottom of the poll. In the choice of a fellow candidate
Wilkes had been favoured by his usual good fortune, dis-
covering a rich and docile tea-dealer named Frederick Bull,
who was eager to serve with him as sheriff whatever the
cost.^
The result of the election was a great triumph for
Wilkes, as the defeat of his colleague had been regarded
as certain. Henceforth, the influence of Parson Home
vanished from the city altogether, A short time after-
wards the clergyman is said to have sent a challenge to
his enemy.
" Sir,” wrote Wilkes in reply, ” I do not think it my
business to cut the throat of every desperado that may be
tired of his life ; but as I am at present High Sheriff of
the City of London it may shortly happen that I may have
an opportunity of attending you in my civil capacity, in
which case I will answer for it that you shall have no
ground to complain of my endeavours to serve you.” *
* On the 2ist of August the most amazing letter that
Wilkes had ever received was brought to Prince’s Court
by an Irish chairman, who said that it had been given to
him by a gentleman in the Strand. It bore the awful
signature of ” Junius,” and was written by the Great
Unknown, whose fulminations in The Public Advertiser,
reviling the highest in the land with a malice and ferocity
unparalleled before, had made him the most famous poll'
* Public Advertiser, June 23 to July 2, 1771 ; Letters of /“"tw
1910), i. ssy-S; Letters of David Hume to W. StrahaUt p. 211;
of the Reign of George III, H, Walpole, !▼. 217 ; London and the
dom, R. R. Sharpe, iii. 121.
* Old and New London, E. Walford, i. 410,
,77.] THE SHRIEVALTY 267
fical controversialist of the age. For Wilkes especially
these letters had a curious interest, since public opinion
had persisted in regarding him as their author until the
disdainful references to himself made it clear that they
wei;e not written by his pen. Even had he possessed
sufficient restraint to transform his style into the polished
invective of Junius, the true Wilkes buffoonery must have
betrayed itself here and there. The calligraphy of the
famous essays also bore no resemblance to his neat irregular
handwriting.
The letter to the sheriff was an appeal to him to use
his influence to repair " the late unhappy divisions in the
city.” Having been a strenuous advocate of the popular
cause in the Middlesex election, Junius was conscious, no
doubt, that the demagogue would listen to him with respect,
Tlie panacea that he proposed was a reconciliation between
Wilkes and Sawbridge, a most ingenious suggestion, for the
squire of Olantighe was the least tractable of Horne’s
followers, and his desertion would have been a deadly blow
to the enemy. Deaf to all advice when his resolution was
formed, Wilkes declined to make overtures to any of his
opponents, having already arranged his plan of campaign
against the Olivers and the Townsends. But he wrote a
civil answer to his distinguished counsellor, giving many
reasons for his refuel. A long correspondence ensued
t>etween the pair, in which Junius sketched a political
programme for the City of London and drew up a set of
resolutions ” for the Supporters of the Bill of Rights.
Wilkes listened with respect to his mentor, flattered by his
attention though seldom following his precepts. With a
touch of humour, unconscious probably in this case, he
offered a ticket for the Lord Mayor’s Ball to the Great
Unknown, promising the hand of his daughter for the
’’’ght. “ How happy should I be to see my Portia here
^nce a graceful minuet with Junius Brutus 1 ” The other,
owever, was not disposed to trust Jack Wilkes with his
268
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,77,
secret. “ My age and figure/’ he replied, " would do but
little credit to my partner.” ^
The duties of sheriff soon caused Wilkes to take his
place in one of the grim processions to Tyburn,* Dn this
occasion five poor convicts were carried to the gallows,
four men and a woman. She rode in the second tJmbril
along with a penitent psalm-singing thief, a beautiful girl
with a wealth of golden hair, condemned to die for stealing a
few yards of stuff from a shop in Ludgate Hill. It was a
pitiful case. A press-gang had carried off her husband, and
she had committed the crime to buy food for her two
babies. Although a very large number of thieves had been
tried at the last sessions and tradesmen were clamouring
for severity, the youth and beauty of Mary Jones might
have touched the hearts of her judges but for her conduct
in the dock. Upbn hearing the verdict she turned in fury
upon the bench, her hot Irish blood flaming with passion.
” God blast ye, you old fogrums ! ” she had cried. So there
was no recommendation to mercy, and she was taken by the
sheriffs to be hanged.
A great concourse lined the route, attracted by the
presence of the popular idol. Dressed in a fnourning frock
coat with a black sword, he rode in his colleague’s splendid
carriage behind the open cart where sat the unhappy gid'
Hundreds, who might have felt pity for her at another
time, had thoughts for no one else but Sheriff Wilkes. Nor
did she gain more sympathy than the other criminals
at the fatal tree. The penitent thief, who made " a dying
speech ” to the crowd, and a blasphemous sailor, who
struggled with the hangman, were of far greater interest
to most of the spectators. Yet, five years later, the whole
nation was stirred by the remembrance of her sad fate. In
a burst of fervid eloquence Sir William Meredith told her
piteous tale to the House of Commons, using many n®
exaggeration, but painting the tragedy in no more hideous
* Letters of Junius (Bohn, 1910), ii. 63-107. i
,77.] THE SHRIEVALTY 269
colours than it deserved. And from that time onward na
story in the Newgate Calendar has drawn forth more
tears.*
A pretty Mrs. Gardiner was present at the spectacle,
Wilkes’s latest mistress, with whom he had been carrying
on a (Sandestinc amour with the aid of her sister under the
nose of a jealous protector. “ How do you do after the
dismal scene this morning,” she wrote to him the same
evening. “ It was the first my eyes ever beheld and it will
be the last.” Some of the newspapers made merry over
Wilkes’s appearance at an execution in an official capacity.
"It is reported,” said the correspondent of the Public
Advertiser, “that one of the malefactors, while exhorting
the populace to take warning by his untimely end, pointed
his address in a very particular manner towards a certain
gentleman who presided at this fatal ceremony, whose
unconscious blush, it was observed, betrayed some glim-
merings of grace, and gave hopes that he might possibly
avail himself of so solemn an admonition.” *
True to his reputation, Wilkes began his term of office
with a bid for popular applause. In a letter to Mr, Akerman,
the governor of Newgate, he announced that the galleries
at the Old Bailey would be flung open to the public, all the
extravagant fees previously charged for admission being
abolished. 'The new regulations were hailed with delight
the criminal classes. At the next sessions the court-
house was besieged by a ragged mob, who fought tooth and
nail to gain possession of the privileged places. All day
long disorder reigned both inside and outside the building,
the judges finding the utmost difficulty in transacting
their business. From time to time the City Marshal and
* fuhlic Advertiser, Sept, 13, i6. Oct, 17, 18, 1771 ; Middlesex Journal,
*‘*~* 7 ’ * 5 -r 7 > * 77 * ; General Evening Post, Oct. 15-17, 17-IV,
^ 7 / 1 ; Parliamentary History ^ xix. 237-8; Notes and Queries f iith series,
1 !‘ ; Session Papers, xlvii. p. 418, Guildhall Library ; History of Tyburn
^arks, pp. 253-8.
Add. MS. 30,873, f, 132 ; Public Advertiser, Oct. 17, 1771.
270 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [177.-72
the Under-Sheriff were compelled to eject some of the diy
turbers in the gallery. Mr. Justice Gould declared from the
bench that he had never seen “ so much irregularity ” in
a court of justice in his life. Perceiving that he had made
a mistake, Wilkes was far too shrewd to repeat it. Before
the next “ gaol delivery ” he had modified his plans, alld the
public ceased to be admitted indiscriminately into the
Session House. With a clever attempt to palliate his error
he protested that Horne and his friends had hired the mob
that had caused all the trouble.^
During the Christmas vacation Wilkes spent a few days
at Bath, which he was in the habit of visiting more often
than any other place at this period of his life. Always
fond of travel, he made a short tour in the country several
times a year, entering the details of his journey in his diary,
noting the inns where he stayed and the distance between
each posting house.* On the present occasion he was
accompanied by the docile Bull, who performed, no doubt,
the duties of paymaster, both lodging with a Mrs. Harford
in the last house on the South Parade towards the river,
Another of his city satellites joined the party, a foppish
and briefless barrister of considerable wealth, named
Watkin Lewis, who had fixed his grip upon the sheriff's
coat-tails in the expectation of being dragged into fame.
The chief event of the visit was a journey to Bristol,
where Wilkes received a royal welcome from the people,
and was entertained at a public banquet in Merchant Taylors
Hall, Yet the incident that seemed to please him most w^
an introduction to the pretty daughters of Thomas Linley,
whom he met at the house of Major William Brereton in
Garrard Street,* For Elizabeth Linley, who soon afterwards
‘ Gentltman's Magatine {1771), p, 471 : Town and Country
iii. 557 ; Public Advertiser ^ Oct, 24, 26, Nov, 30, 1771. „
» Add. MSS, 50.866; c£, "John Wilkes and hl9 Visits to Bath,
Emanuel Green, in Proceedings of the Bath Natural History Clubt x. 375 *
• Garrard Street is now Somerset Street. Major William Brere
was Master of Ceremonies in 1777.
,772} THE SHRIEVALTY 271
I;)ecame the wife of Richard Brinsley Sheridan, he had an
unbounded admiration.
The eldest I think still superior to all the handsome
things I have heard of her/* he wrote to Miss Wilkes two
days later. “ She does not seem in the least spoilt by the
idle talk of our sex j and is the most modest, pleasing,
delicate flower I have seen for a great while/*
With Mary Linley, who afterwards married Richard
Tickell, he was less satisfied, calling her ** a mere coquet,
a man's jou jou, no sentiment.** ^ Whenever the fastidious
Wilkes eulogised beauty the rest of the world was certain
, to endorse his opinion.
* Lift of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 97-8.
CHAPTER XVI
LORD MAYOR OF LONDON
1772-1775
D uring the next four years Wilkes was the most
I conspicuous figure in the turbulent arena of
' city politics. Two powerful factions were
arrayed against him all the while, disputing
his progress step by step, the mercantile adherents of the
Government and the party of Oliver and Townsend. The
battle was a desperate one, fluctuating violently from side
to side, and though often worsted for the moment he always
triumphed in the end. In a measure perhaps the odds
were equally divided, the majority of the Liverymen being
in his favour but the brains and wealth of the corporation
were against him. Often betrayed by the treachery or the
cowardice of his friends he trusted no one, ’practically con-
ducting the contest single-handed. It was a feat of states-
manship of no common order, this municipal campaign of
John Wilkes, in which none but a man of his cunning and
finesse would have been able to succeed. A book might he
written for the student of political tactics, tracing the inner
history of Guildhall during the ascendency of the poplar
hero, showing his almost superhuman sagacity in the antici-
pation of events and the management of men.^
Despite his habit of playdng to the gallery, Wilkes proved
an excellent sheriff. He introduced numerous reforms,
most of which were necessary and judicious. A
* To a great extent this has been done in London and tht
by R. R. Sharpe, vol. hi. Space alone has prevented Dr, Sharp* >
giving an exhaustive account of Willces's nsanoeuvres.
aya
,77.] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 273
/' Freeholders’ Book ” being required, containing an accurate
list of the electors, he caused one to be compiled.^ Accom-
panied by his colleague he made periodical visits to the
various gaols in order to see for himself that the prisoners
were treated with humanity* Fresh regulations were
issuM to prevent the bailiff from treating the debtor with
injustice, and one of them was discharged as an example
to the rest for disobeying these injunctions.® The infamous
Holland, who had used his position as sheriff’s of&cer to
levy blackmail, was detected by the vigilance of his new
master, and met a merited fate on Tyburn tree.* On
occasion, Wilkes was willing to spend the whole night in
helping the salvage men to extinguish a fire.® At the close
of his term of office he received a unanimous vote of thanks
from the Livery.®
While he was sheriff Wilkes would allow no French
wine to be served at dinner in the Old Bailey, and made an
ineffectual attempt to persuade Lord Mayor Nash to adopt
a similar rule at the entertainments in the Mansion House.’
There was a special motive for the proscription, since his
enemies persisted in spreading the rumour that he was in
the pay of France. The scandal probably owed its origin to
his friendship with the Chevalier d’Eon, it being alleged
that the French minister could raise a riot in London during
the stormy days of the Middlesex election whenever he
chose to order one. During his shrievalty Wilkes was
accused frequently of visiting the French Ambassador, the
innuendo implying that he called to receive the wages paid
' Toum and Country Magazine^ iv. 52 ; Public Advertiser^ Nov. 27, 1771 ;
Jan. 8, 1772.
^ Public Advertiser, Dec. 21, 1771.
^ Town and Country Magazine, iii. 613 ; Public Advertiser, Feb. 26,
1772.
* Account of James Bolland (1772), p. 15 I Public Advertiser, Dec. 2, 16,
^771 ; Maxch 25, May 9, 1772 ; The Newgate Calendar,
® Annual Register (1772), in ; Public Advertiser, June 29, 1772.
• Gentleman's Magazine (1772), pp. 489.
’ Gentleman's Magazine (1771), p. 471.
S
274 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,773
to him for causing dissension between the city and the'
Government.^ The charge was never proved. Even if it
had been, Wilkes no doubt would have managed to palliate
it. Probably he would have contended that no one had
ever been able to influence his conduct either by bribes, or
by threats, and that he was doing a smart and a patriotic
act in extorting levies from the pockets of an unfriendly
nation.
John Reynolds, the pugilistic attorney, managed to secure
the position of under-sheriff during his employer’s term
of office. Owing to his sense of humour he continued high
in Wilkes’s favour, although a negligent man of business.
Enemies declared with some reason that he was ignorant
and vulgar and “ spoke bad grammar ” ; but he was ever
ready to roar with laughter at his patron’s jests, and could
always spare the time to take him for a day’s holiday to
his country house at Bromley, where the sheriff forgot all
his anxieties in the charming society of Mrs. Reynold and
her sister.^ It proved a most unfortunate connection,
terminating eventually in the lawyer’s bankruptcy. It
was Wilkes’s fate invariably to be badly served by those
he trusted, being, in spite of all his shrewdness, absolutely
without discretion when choosing a subordinate.
During his shrievalty and for many years afterwards,
the Supporters of the Bill of Rights continued to pay his
debts and provide him with an annuity. With happy
tact, shortly after the great schism, he had persuaded the
society to “ take into consideration the state of his affairs,’
declaring at the same time that he had no claim upon them.*
The docile and opulent Bull was proud to act as treasurer,
' History of Reign of George III, H. Walpole, iii. 138 ; Letters of R'
Walpole (Toynbee), vii. 321 ; Walpoliana, J. Pinkerton, i. 2 ; Mintoife^
sur La Chevaliire D’Eon, F. Gaillardet, p. 186 ; D’Eon de Beaumont, 0 .
Homberg and F. Jousselin, p. 130 ; Add. MS. 35,368, f. 310 ; Letters of
Wilkes to his Daughter, i. 177 ; Gentleman's Magaxine (1771), 5 ^ I
Advertiser, Dec. 6, 17, 1771-
• Life and Times of Frederick Reynolds, passim.
* Town and Country Magaeine, iv. 109.
.772] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 275
while Brass Crosby and Watkin Lewis contended with each
other for the chair. Although the contributions of the
faithful flowed in a less copious stream, the principal
members of the club could afford to make up the deficiency.
Dr. Wilson and Sir Joseph Mawbey were wealthy men,
and Humphrey Cotes, who remained a devoted slave, was
always ready to convass for the benefit of his leaders. Many
of the Whig magnates, including Lord Rockingham and
the Dukes of Portland and Devonshire, contributed an
annual sum of £100 for Wilkes’s benefit.^ An occasional
legacy swelled the balance-sheet. And though his income
was considerable, he supplemented it largely by credit.
At the next election he stood for the mayoralty. In
order to prevent the return of a “ ministerial aider-
man,” James Townsend was chosen as the other popular
candidate, Lord Shelburne’s influence in the city being in
a large measure responsible for his selection.® Having
proclaimed publicly in his dispute with Oliver that “ it
was the duty of every gentleman to submit to the Livery
the choice of his colleague,” Wilkes could make no objec-
tion, although the enmity between Townsend and himself
was more bitter than ever. In the Court of Common
Council they had accused one another respectively of com-
mitting perjury and uttering falsehoods, and everyone
believed that sooner or later a duel must take place.
Wilkes headed the poll, as all had expected, followed
closely by his enemy, who received only twenty-three votes
less, and though their opponents demanded a scrutiny the
election was confirmed. During the contest Townsend
disdained to appear on the hustings, proclaiming osten-
tatiously that he had “ gone shooting.” When the twb
lenders were submitted as usual for the final choice of the
Court of Aldermen the craftiness of Richard Oliver, who
^ Memoirs of Lord Rockingham, ii. 236.
* Life of Lord Shelburne, E. Fitzmaurice, ii. 287 ; London and the King-^
R. R. Sharpe, iii, 133.
276 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES i,;;,
was now one of the sheriffs, secured the selection of his
friend. By making the return while the Wilkites were
unprepared, a majority of the aldermen “ scratched ” for
Townsend, who accordingly became Lord Mayor. A great
outcry arose, a real and spontaneous outburst of popular
indignation, and Wilkes himself, for once in his life, lost his
temper also.^
While her father was absorbed in municipal affairs the
beloved Polly had been paying a visit to Mr. and Mrs. Crisp
Molineux at Garboldisham in Norfolk. In the pretty
country house, with its old-world garden and wealth of
stately trees, she was always a welcome guest, the lady of
the manor remaining her devoted friend to the close of
her hfe. But Garboldisham Old Hall soon ceased to be the
happy home that Miss Wilkes found it in the autumn of
the year. Husband and wife, through incompatibility of
temper, began to live much of their lives apart. Mrs.
Molineux, the spoilt child of an indulgent father, found it
impossible to tolerate the careless habits of old Crisp,
upon whose manners and character a long residence in
the West Indies had left an indelible stamp. On his
part, the genial planter was quick to percave that the
handsome heiress whom he had married was neurotic and
invertebrate.
Upon the four children, all special pets of Miss Wilkes,
the estrangement of the parents cast the inevitable gloom.
George, the only boy, often was condemned to spend his
holidays at school, and Peggy and Betsy, the two younger
daughters, who seem to have been Mr. Molineux’s favourites,
were kept away from their mother as much as possible.
In writing to her father Miss Wilkes referred affectionately
to Mrs. Molineux as “ the widow,” and her sympathies
were always on her side. The patriot and his daughter^
never ceased to be on the most friendly terms with the ^
* Journal of Reign of George the Third, H. Walpole, i. 163-4 ; Letters of
Mrs. Carter to Mrs. Montagu, ii, 174 ; Public Advertiser, Oct. i~ 3 t, > 77 *'
.772] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 277
unlucky lady, who managed to remain gay and sprightly
in spite of her tribulations, and they often talked with
pity about her “ distracted family.” In the three Miss
Molineux also Wilkes took a fatherly interest, for they
^ew up to be very pretty girls.*
During the latter half of the eighteenth century no
Lord Mayor of London experienced a more turbulent year of
office than James Townsend. A great manifestation of
popular anger occurred a few days after his election, the
people being indignant that he had been chosen instead of
his colleague. As the Lord Mayor’s procession was making
its way to Westminster it was stopped by the mob, who
attempted to turn back Townsend’s coach, crying that
"Wilkes must go first,” and the windows of most of the
carriages were broken by stones. In the evening, while
the mayoral ball was in progress, a riotous multitude sur-
rounded Guildhall, breaking lamps, extinguishing lights,
and probably would have invaded the building had they
not been dispersed by the militia. Alderman Townsend,
no less brave than irascible, was delighted by these dis-
turbances, ^nd endeavoured to malign his enemy by
accusing Wilkes and his friends of “ hiring the mobs ” to
attack him. Having absented himself from " the Lord
Mayor’s Show,” lest his presence might provoke a riot,
Wilkes was able to refute the imputation, and declared that
the disorder could have been suppressed at once had not
Sheriff Oliver been a coward. It was his good fortune
invariably to be accused of offences that his antagonists
were unable to prove.®
With implacable virulence, but without losing his temper,
Wilkes continued to revile his antagonist incessantly, in-
sulting him in the council chamber, lampooning him in
^ MSS. of Major G. F. Molineux-Montgomerie of Garboldisham ;
MSS. passim; Will of Crisp Molineux, P.C.C. Dodwell, p. 273;
^^sgrave’s Obituary ^ iv. 212-13.
’ Journal of Reign of George Illy H. Walpole, i. 164 ; Public Advertiser y
Nov.
13 , 1772 ; London Magazine (1772), 549.
278 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.773
anonymous paragraphs in the newspapers. Fond of con-
tention as he was, and though he met every onslaught
unflinchingly, it was not long before Townsend would have
welcomed a treaty of peace, constant innuendoes extinguish-
ing the last remnants of his popularity. The charge that
he was not in sympathy with the demand for shorter
parliaments brought him much odium ; the accusation that
he had flogged two children for trespassing on his land
aroused an angry clamour against him. Nor would Wilkes
allow the people to forget that their Lord Mayor was attached
to the Shelburne faction, the taunt of “ Malagrida ” being
always on his lips. He told his enemy to his face that he
was a liar and a brutal tyrant, adding significantly that
he himself had “ a hand and a sword.” Yet though re-
nowned for his bad temper, Townsend would not be provoked
to a duel*
A typical instance of the cunning tactics with which the
demagogue harassed his rival occurred when the City of
London presented a fresh Remonstrance to the Crown.
Wilkes himself refused to accompany the deputation to
St. James’s, alleging with unwonted delicacy that as he was
” personally obnoxious to the King ” it would be “ rude
and indecent to force himself into the Royal Presence,”
and suggesting very truly that his appearance might cause
a riot. Having thus made his own peace with the populace,
he pfoceeded to place Townsend in an unpleasant dilemma.
When the Remonstrance was being composed he insisted
that it should be drafted in the most strong and vehement
language, boasting that the Lord Mayor would be arraigned
for treason if ho presented it and stoned by the people if
he did not. By hesitancy Townsend augmented his em-
barrassments, for he sought the opinion of Thurlow as well
as Glynn, hoping to concihate both Whig and Tory, and,
being finally compelled to accompany the Remonstrance
* Public Advertiser, Nov. i6, Dec. 4, 1772; Feb. 22, 1773 <
Journal, Feb. 20-23, * 773 .
,773] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 279
to the palace, he whispered to the Lord Chamberlain that
“ he was only acting officially.” ^
While enjoying his tit-for-tat with his rival, Wilkes took
care that the bitter memory of the Middlesex election should
not fade from the public mind, prompting Savile to move
an annual motion, which received the desultory support
of the Opposition. Soon after the presentation of the
Remonstrance he found a better opportunity still of adver-
tising his claims. A call of the House of Commons being
moved by the Prime Minister, the sheriffs received notice
to summon the various representatives of the counties and
boroughs, and Oliver and Lewis, who were now in office,
ignored Colonel Luttrell and instructed Wilkes to attend as
member for Middlesex. Having written to the Speaker,
asserting his right to his seat, the demagogue demanded
his certificate at the Crown Office, and, being refused, he
marched to St. Stephen’s, where he demanded that he should
be allowed to take the oath. Although his application
was ignored, the Government did not venture to punish
him for contempt. The occasion also gave him another
chance of vituperating the. Shelburne faction, for he in-*
sinuated that Oliver had wished to send the summons to
Colonel Luttrell, being dissuaded with difficulty by the
protests of Watkin Lewis.*
At the next election Wilkes made another bid for the
Mayoralty, choosing Frederick Bull as his colleague. Being
assured that his nominee and himself would head the poll,
he knew that the court of Aldermen must select one of them.
In this manner he foresaw that it was possible for him to
appoint the Lord Mayor every year.
^ Journal of Reign of George III, H. Walpole, i. i88, 190 ; Life of Lord
Shelburne, E, Fitzmaurice, ii. 291 ; Middlesex Journal, Ma.tch.g-ii, 18-20,
1773 ; Public Advertiser, March 9, 16, 20, 26, 27, 29, 30 ; April 5, 6, 7, 8,
% 1773.
* Correspondence of R. M. Keith, i. 339-40 ; Letters of George the Third
to Lord North, i. 131 ; Journal of House of Commons, xxxiv. 279-283 ;
Annual Register (1773), pp. 190-5 ; Public Advertiser^ April 7-29, 1773.
28 o life of JOHN WILKES (1773
" I am happy, gentlemen,” he had boasted to the Livery
twelve months previously, “ to be farther useful to you by
humbly offering to you, at all future times, the tender of
my services, in conjunction with any gentleman whom you
many choose hereafter to raise to the dignity of your Chief
Magistrate. I shall thus enjoy the satisfaction of vesting in
the Livery of London the full and sole power of electing their
own mayor, a privilege enjoyed by all other corporations.” ‘
It was an ultimatum both to the " court party ” and the
" Malagrida gang,” a threat practically to ostracise them
until they should allow him to become Lord Mayor.
Undaunted by the tribulations of Townsend, the Shel-
burne faction made another effort to thwart their anta-
gonist, putting up Sawbridge, their strongest candidate, in
conjunction with Oliver. At a Common Hall on the day of
election he accused Wilkes from the hustings of slandering
him in anonymous paragraphs, which elicited a " spirited
reply ” from the patriot, who, being ever on the watch to
alienate Sawbridge from his party, took the opportunity
of praising him highly as “ a private man.” From the
opening of the poll it was obvious that Wilkes would gain a
splendid victory, and his majority exceeded expectations.
Nearly 1700 votes were given to him. Bull receiving only
35 fewer, but Sawbridge totalled less than 1200, and Oliver
came last with 1094. Outside Guildhall a delighted mob
shouted for “ Wilkes and Liberty,” and when the conqueror
appeared he was drawn in triumph through the streets.
A couple of days later, when the two names were submitted
to the court, an equal number of aldermen " scratched "
for each, but Bull was chosen Lord Mayor by the casting
vote of Townsend.* Wilkes, nevertheless, was quite content,
for, since his docile nominee was entirely under his thumb,
he could look forward to dictating the policy of the Mansion
1 Public Advertiser t Sept. 24, 1773.
• Public Advertiser, Sept. 30 ; Oct. 9, 1773 ; Middlesex Jouffud, Sept
30-Oct. 9.
, 774 ] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 281
House as thoroughly as though he had worn the chain of
office.
In the course of the next spring his natural son, Jack
Smith, came back from France, where he had been living for
four years. Being attached to the “ lively little rogue,”
Wilkes had taken much interest in his education, sending
him first to Harrow and then transplanting him to the
academy of Monsieur Lauchoix in Paris. It was an
original plan, the lad being now only thirteen, and the result
was peculiar ; for Master Jack arrived in London, a French
boy in taste, manner, and appearance, having also nearly
forgotten his own language. Much perturbed, for as he
had tabooed French wine it was inconsistent to have a
French son, Wilkes placed him under the care of the famous
Angelo, hoping that he would lose his Parisian habits in
the gymnasium and the riding-school. At the same time
he made up his mind to send him to Germany for a year or
two, in case the first antidote failed to take effect.*
In August Wilkes was ill for nearly three weeks at
Prince’s Court suffering from ague, the only malady that
ever troubled Wm. The complaint, however, was apt to
return at frequent intervals, and the fever was often obstinate
Md distressing, requiring bark and James’s Powder in large
quantities before he could find relief. Always a patient
invalid, he never disobeyed the doctor’s orders, keeping his
until convalescent, or sitting in the cosy parlour, de-
i^orated with prints after Hogarth, overlooldng Birdcage
Walk. On the present occasion the attack proved a severe
We, causing much commotion both to friend and foe, but
^5 fine constitution was as vigorous as ever, and the illness
wver became dangerous. When able to travel he paid a
Wort visit to Eastbourne and Brighton.*
He was back in London early in September in order to
' His/ory of the Isle of Wight, W. H. Davenport Adams, p. 003 ; Se>
»>SM«ces of H. Angelo, i. 41 ; Life of WOhes, J. Almon, v. 117.
Wilkes’s diary, Add. MSS. 30,866.
282
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1774
make his plans for the election of the new Lord Mayor.
Once again he chose his former colleague — a threat to the
Court of Aldermen that they would have to elect Alderman
Bull for all time unless they would consent to accept Aider-
man Wilkes. The Townsend faction were unable to find
anyone to oppose him, Sawbridge having been conciliated
at last by their wily foe, and they were obliged to give their
support to the “ court candidates,” Esdaile and Kennett.
As usual the poll was open for six days, from the 30th of
September to the 6th of October, 1774, and at its close,
Wilkes, who received thirty-four more votes than his
associate, had beaten the nearest of his opponents by a
majority of almost five hundred.
On the following morning, when the election was to be
decided, Guildhall and the adjacent streets were filled by
as resolute and exultant a multitude as ever assembled
beneath the banner of John Wilkes. Few doubted the
final result, and it was significant that no preparations had
been made to suppress a riot. On the hustings, within the
historic building, all the prominent “ patriots ” were
present with radiant faces, and Sergeant Glynn, “though
emaciated and eat up with gout and quite unable to stand,”
was carried to his seat by two men, determined at any hazard
to take part in the triumph of his old comrade. Shortly
after, twelve o’clock, when the Common Sergeant had de-
clared the state of the poll, the sheriffs departed to submit
the names of the two leaders to the Court of Aldermen.
Half an hour later the Lord Mayor and his retinue filed
slowly on to the platform. A signal being given to the
decrepit Glynn, whose duty it was as Recorder of London
to announce the result of the Livery, he hobbled to hif
feet, aided by his two bearers. Before he had spoken a
word the vast assembly had guessed the tidings he had to
tell them, and as he declared that " the election had fan®
on John Wilkes,” his voice was drowned by the m®
mighty shout that had ever resounded within the 0
.774] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 283
hall.* A moment later the applause was swelled by ten
thousand throats from without, the bells from all the neigh-
bouring steeples joining in the paean of joy.
In the eyes of the superstitious there was one incident
to mar the pleasure of the occasion. While the chain was
being placed over the head of the new I^rd Mayor, according
to custom in the presence of the whole Livery, the links
became unfastened and it fell upon the floor. Wilkes,
however, was no believer in such portents of ill-luck.
Flushed with triumph, he advanced to the front of the hust-
ings, delivering the usual speech, thanking the electors for
the honour they had paid him, with vigour and earnestness.
“ It is the greatest honour,” he declared in his hoarse, harsh
voice, “ that you could confer or I receive, and you may
depend upon it, as you have chosen me for the guardian of
your rights and liberties, I shall always be ready to defend
the franchise of this city and the liberties of the people in
general. I do promise always to be ready to meet you in
Common Hall or Common Council whenever called upon
for that purpose, that we may confer together for the great
purpose of preserving the constitution of this commercial
city.” Outside Guildhall the people had waited with
patience and good humour all the morning to welcome their
champion. No sooner was he seated in his coach than the
horses were taken from the shafts and he was dragged in
triumph to the Mansion House. In the scufifle for the honour
of drawing him through the streets one of his admirers lost
his life.*
In one particular the ensuing Lord Mayor’s Show was
fhe most notable that had taken place hitherto. Never
before had so great a concourse witnessed the spectacle.
' Only three of the aldermen voted against Wilkes — Oliver, Townsend,
another.
* Middlesex Journal^ Sept. 29-TOct. 8, 1774 ; Public Advevtiseif, Oct. 10
n, 1774 . GentlemafCs Magazine {1774)1 P* 49i ; Town and Country
^agaeine, vi. 555 ; Lady*$ Magazine (1774), pp. 555-6 ; London Magazine^
X in. 507 ; Journal of the Reign of George J//, H. Walpole, i. 420-1.
284 life of JOHN WILKES [t„^
From the “ Three Crane ” stairs at Queenhithe, where the
flotilla of stately barges began its journey, the water was
covered with boats as far as Westminster, each filled with
a little crowd of holiday-makers. " They formed one sur-
face of wood,” a journalist declared, “ and looked like a
temporary bridge.” On both sides of the river the banks
were lined with jubilant spectators. It was a common
remark that the number of ladies in the windows and
balconies was larger than on any previous occasion. There
was no reason for the demagogue to complain of the zeal
of his fellow-citizens.
Of all the London pageants none was more splendid or
picturesque than this annual procession up the Thames
when the Lord Mayor went to take the oaths in the Court
of Exchequer. Modem progress, alas, has substituted
a conventional drive through the streets. A master of
pageantry, Wilkes took advantage of the opportunity to
display the resources of the city in full panoply. Seldom
had the state barge made a braver show of pendants and
streamers. The barge of every city company followed in
his train, bright with new paint and gilding. Never had
his lordship’s footmen appeared more magnificent in their
new liveries of blue and crimson. Every councillor and
every official, entitled to wear a robe, was pressed into
service to swell the triumph.
On the return journey, when the Lord Mayor disembarked
as usual at Blackfriars Stairs, so tumultuous was his welcome
that he deemed it needful to make a short speech to the
excited crowds, advising “ decorum.” Preceded by the
Joiners’ Company, to which he belonged, and the Salters
Company, out of compliment to Alderman Bull, with the
" city music ” playing popular airs, and the militia M his
escort (for he would not hire the artillery to walk in ^
pageant since they had always voted against hiin)i y*®
procession began its march through the streets, inovi^
slowly and with labour, as the horses of the state cos®'
,774] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 285
frightened by the acclamations, were difficult to control.
At every step of the journey Wilkes was received with the
wildest enthusiasm. The City of London had never given
such a magnificent ovation to any man. In spite of the
sneers of his enemies his popularity was greater than ever
it had been before.
Yet there was much bitterness in the cup for which he
had fought so greedily. At the Lord Mayor’s dinner in
Guildhall, when the Show was over, numbers of those who
had been bidden would not deign to attend the feast.
Usually the most illustrious in the land were eager guests,
but on the present occasion the nobility for the most part
refused the invitation. At the ball, too, which followed
the banquet there were few of the high-bom women whose
presence usually made the assembly so brilliant. Illness,
moreover, seized him just as he was sitting down to table.
The day had been a most arduous one, for he had commenced
his progress to Westminster at twelve o’clock in the morning
and did not reach the Guildhall again till nearly five, being
exposed, during the greater part of the time, to the in-
clemency of the raw November air. Although he managed
to perform his tiuties both at the dinner and the dance, it
was evident that he was in the grip of fever. On his return
to Prince’s Court that evening — for the apartments at the
Mansion House were not yet ready for him — ^the indisposition
proved to be an attack of ague, and he was unable to leave
the house for seven days.^
At the time of Wilkes’s accession to the mayoralty the
country was in the turmoil of a general election. Fourteen
later, amidst tipsy cheers and the booming of cannon,
had been returned once more as member for Middlesex
along with Serjeant Gl3mn, no one venturing to do battle
against him. The scene at the hustings at Brentford Butts
‘ Middlesex Journal, Nov. lo, 1774 ; London Magasine (1774), pp.
] ' Gentlenean’s Magating (1774), p. 538: cf. History of London>
^Entick, iii. 305-7; History of London, B. Lambert, iii. 209-10; Lord
‘»»yor's Pageants, F. W. Fairholt, i, i43-4-
286
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,774
was a t 5 rpical one, the patriots making a fine display of
equipages and cavalcades of horsemen, banners streaming,
music playing, and an unsavoury crowd, filled with free
beer, jostling and cheering in front of the bedizened platform.
From an open window in a neighbouring house Wilkes’s
termagant sister, Mrs. Hayley, smiled approval upon the
freeholders. As soon as they could manage to escape,
the two knights of the Shire set off in a coach and six
belonging to Alderman Bull and drove over Kew Bridge
to the “ Star and Garter ” at Richmond, where they sat
down to a festive dinner with some congenial friends.
Aspiring to lead a faction of his own in the House of
Commons, like Shelburne or Rockingham, Wilkes had issued
a manifesto, soon after the dissolution, that all who wished
to fight under his flag were required to endorse. It was one
of the first examples of the familiar “ programme,” with
which a political party in modem days wooes the favour
of the proletariat at the time of a general election. In sub-
stance it was calculated to satisfy the most progressive of
the patriots. Commencing with a pledge to support the
form of Government established at the Revolution, it advo-
cated shorter Parliaments and a more fair 5nd equal repre-
sentation of the people, demanding also that the American
colonists should be conciliated by favourable legislation.
Every candidate who disapproved of these principles was
opposed by the Wilkites.^
At one period it seemed probable that Wilkes wouW
have a considerable number of followers in the new Parlia- ,
ment. However, several of his nominees met with unex-
pected failure. In the City of London he carried Bull and
Sawbridge and his brother-in-law George Hayley, 1J“|
Richard Oliver, by gaining the support of the ministena
party, managed to defeat Brass Crosby. In Westminster,
also, his two disciples. Lords Mahon and Mountmorres,
whom an easy victory had been anticipated, were beaten ny
* Annual Register (1774), p. 153 ; GetUleman’s Magmnt (I 774 )»P’
1774] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 287
Earl Percy and Lord Thomas Clinton. Though the result
was attributed to mismanagement, since Humphrey Cotes
was allowed to stand as a third candidate while the name
of Edmund Burke had also been submitted to the electors,
the scat was won by the assiduity of the Duchess of Northum-
berland, who came to canvass for her son in Covent Garden,
and, fawning upon the mob in the best Wilkes manner,
fairly beat him at his own game. In the end the demagogue's
party numbered about a dozen, whom with characteristic
profanity he dubbed his ** Twelve Apostles.” ^
It was on the and of December, 1774, that Wilkes took his
scat, after being ostracised from Parliament for the space
of eleven years. Two months later he raised the question
of the Middlesex election, moving that the Resolution of
the 17th of February, 1769, which expelled him from the
House, should be expunged from the Journals, as sub-
versive of the rights of the whole body of electors of the
Kingdom.” Much curiosity had been aroused by the
motion, and there was the compliment of a full House
when he rose in his place. Although one of his sarcasms
was levelled at the king, whom he likened to “ imperial
Jove, pointing fiis thunderbolts red with uncommon wrath ”
at his devoted head, the speech was a temperate one, so
temperate indeed that it conveyed the fatal impression of
insincerity. Having declared that “ the noble lord in the
blue ribbon,” by proposing the expulsion, had ” com-
mitted high treason against Magna Carta,” he assured
Lord North, to whom he was referring, in a stage whisper
that he ” only said so to please the fellows who followed
bim.” Otherwise it was a fluent and well-ordered oration,
lull of common-sense, logical and intelligent, occasionally
gleaming with a flash of eloquence. The occasion was
H Journal, Oct. 15-18. 1774 ; Journal of Reign of George III,
^•Walpole, i. 422-4, 427-8 ; Hist. MSS, Comm., 15th Report, Appendix,
315 ; 13th Report, Appendix, Part VI, 134 ; Correspondence of
^71, 475-6 ; The Harcourt Papers, vii, 315 ; LeUers of H*
pole (Toynbee), ix. 70-1, 74.
288
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,774
memorable owing to Charles Fox’s justification of the
expulsion, and because James Luttrell confessed that he
had always disapproved of his brother’s candidature.
After an eight hours’ debate, the Government defeated the
motion by a majority of 66, but 171 members followed
Wilkes into the division lobby. An amusing incident
occurred during the evening. Charles Van, member for
Brecon, had asserted that Wilkes had been judged guilty
of blasphemy. The Lord Mayor at once called him to
order, and showed that there was no truth in the statement.
“ A puppy ! ” he muttered audibly, after he had routed
his antagonist ; " does he think I don’t know what is
blasphemy better than he does ! ” ^
Wilkes proved an admirable Lord Mayor just as he had
been an admirable Sheriff. Sobered by the responsibility
of office, he did not allow the theories of the demagogue
to clash with the duties of the administrator. Having
much of the martinet in his disposition he would never
tolerate the smallest laxity in his subordinates, demanding
the most perfect discipline and efficiency from those who
worked under his command. Although careless as regards
his own affairs, he had a natural capacity foi* public business.
A Government department would have been safe in his
hands, but he would have reduced the family distillery to
bankruptcy in a twelvemonth, a talent for administration
being wholly different from the ability of the tradesman.
Much stricter in his control of the markets than any of
his predecessors, many of Wilkes’s regulations were far m
advance of his age. The treatment of cattle, brought to
Smithfield and elsewhere, became far more humane under
his rule, the City Marshal being instructed to suppress all
cruelty. A vigorous crusade was directed against trades-
men who gave short weight, and the practice of raising
* Journals of the House of Commons, xxxv. 141 ; ParHam*t^«ry
xviii. 374-6 ; Speeches of Mr, Wilhes (1786), 19^39 ; Jounul of
Geofjo TA»V<i, H. Walpole, i. 464-6 : CorresponitneoofGeorgt"*^''
with Lord North, i. 234 ; Annual Register (1775), 93 i <<>1.
.775] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 289
prices by forestalling or "cornering the market” was
punished with severity. A disciple of the old school of
economics, like most of his contemporaries, Wilkes made use
of all the power that he possessed to regulate the price of
provisions, his inclinations being to make reductions out
of sympathy for the poor. Having organised a special
charity for the benefit of prisoners, he was able to distribute
a considerable sum at Christmas time among the various
gaols. One of his most admirable reforms had the effect
of clearing the streets of the city of disorderly women.
Being informed by a deputation of London merchants that
it was inconvenient for them to attend at Guildhall, as it
was so far from the Exchange, he agreed to hold a court
in future at the Mansion House.^ In a dispute over a
municipal election he refused to sanction a decision of the
Court of Aldermen, believing it to be an unjust one, and
after a desperate struggle he managed to work his will — a
most popular victory and a memorable tit-for-tat with his
old enemies.*
Before long society began to change its attitude in some
degree, and no longer tabooed his hospitality. On the 17th
of February, I775, the Archbishop of Canterbury and five
other bishops dined with him at the Mansion House, while
brilliant company attended the Easter ball on the i8th
of April, one of the most princely entertainments ever given
by a Lord Mayor.* To his own family circle he was most
liberal, inviting his nearest relatives repeatedly to the
various banquets, few of his old friends also having reason
to complain of his neglect. None of his predecessors ever
gave a greater number of private dinner-parties. Naturally
' Annual Register {1775), 105 ; Middlesex Journal, Nov. 10-12, 17-19,
19-22, 22-24 : E>ec. 17-20, 22-24, 24-27, 29-31, 1774 : Public Ad~
^ ertiser , Jan. 2 and 9, 1775 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 174.
’ London and the Kingdom, R. R. Sharpe, iii. 146-9 : Middlesex Journal,
1-3, 8-10, 1774.
Morning Post, April 19, 1775 ; Mmoirs of the Colman Family, R. B,
Peake, i. 334-5.
T
290 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES tiw
his expenses were enormous, larger probably than those of
any previous Lord Mayor, reaching the sum of £8226, or
£3337 in excess of the income allowed to support the dignity
of the office. Three years before he had spent £1800
during his shrievalty. Then, no doubt, Frederick Bull was
the loser. Now, it was his creditors.^
Having seen him break a lance with the House of
Commons and humiliate the Court of Aldermen, most of the
patriots would have been grievously disappointed if the
mayoralty of their leader had run its course without a
passage at arms with the king. In order to provide the
opportunity the Livery of London drew up a petition,
“ praying for the removal ” of Lord North and his cabinet,
“ for their iniquitous measures ” with respect to their
" fellow subjects in America.” ** Nothing loth, the Lord
Mayor accepted the responsibility of presenting the remon-
strance, leading a civic procession to St. James’s on the
loth of April, an inquisitive crowd flocking in his train.
Nevertheless, there was no repetition of the Beckford
interlude, Wilkes being far too sensible to try to wrangle
with his Sovereign in proprid persond. Still, something of
the kind had been anticipated, for on his 'arrival at the
palace he was informed that His Majesty desired that he
would not speak to him.
“ The caution is needless,” he replied calmly, " for I
never expected the honour.”
So exemplary, indeed, was' his behaviour that the king
remarked, after the deputation had departed, that he had
” never seen so well-bred a Lord Mayor.” * Yet George
had treated the petitioners with the greatest contempt,
^ Public Advertiser y June 19, 1776*
* Gentleman* s Magazine (1775), p. 203; Loizdon Magazine ( 1115 )*
209-10 ; Town and Country Magazine (1775), p. 220 ; Annuai Register
(1775), P- 106. .
* Public Advertiser y April ii, 1775; Journal of Reign of George ** ^
H. Walpole, i. 484 ; Letters to and from Lord Malmesbury^ i.
spondence of George the Third with Lord North, i. 242,
1775] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 291
telling them that he was “ struck with astonishment that
any part of his subjects should encourage the rebellious
disposition which prevailed in some of his colonies.”
Although careful to behave as a gentleman in his inter-
course with his Sovereign, Wilkes showed no lack of courage
in defending the privileges of his fellow-citizens. Having
received a letter from the Lord Chamberlain, two days
later, intimating that His Majesty would listen to no
petition or remonstrance in future unless it came from the
" body corporate,” he returned a firm answer, maintaining
the right of the Livery to present an address to the king.^
In order to put the question to the test a fresh petition,
at his instigation, was drawn up at the next Common Hall
protesting against the American War, and the Sheriffs were
instructed to inquire whether George the Third would
receive it, “ sitting on the throne.” Naturally, George
the Tliird refused to give any such undertaking, declaring
that he alone must decide the place, an answer which the
Livery condemned as “ evasive, nugatory, and insulting,”
Wilkes announcing publicly that, as His Majesty would not
receive them “ sitting on the throne,” he thought it his
duty not to go on with the address. Instead, resolutions
were passed, informing the king that his answer was a
direct denial of the right of the court to have their petitions
heard. Having vindicated their principles in this maimer
each of the two enemies was ready to accept the compromise.
A new address was prepared, which the king agreed to
receive “ sitting on the throne," as it came from the city
in a corporate capacity, and it was duly presented at St.
James’s Palace by the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Common
Councillors.*
Wilkes was fortunate in being assisted by a most popular
' Public Advertistf, May 6, 1773 ; Centltman's Magaxine, tjjs> PP-
22o~I.
^ Public Advertisevt June 26, 29 ; July 5, 6, 15 ; Morning Post^ June
jy ' July 4, 10, 1775 ; GentUman's Magazine (i775)» PP- 302, 347 ; Annual
Wev (1775), pp. 107, 255 ; Hist of England, J, Adolphus, ii. 254.
292 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,7;5
Lady Mayoress. With much of her father’s aplomb, but
sincere and unaffected, a bright conversationalist, and
noted for her taste in dress, his beloved daughter played
her part more successfully than it ever had been played
before. One forgot the plainness of her features in the
elegance of her manners, for her schooling was that of Paris
of the Pompadour, giving her every charm that art can
bestow on womanhood. Though a great heiress and now in
her twenty-fifth year, no eligible suitor had come forward.
Only Captain Kendal, an Irish adventurer, for a time was
believed to have serious intentions. The sole piece of
gallantry of which she had been the heroine was a challenge
sent by Tiger Roach to a brother officer who had spoken
slightingly of her personal appearance. Possibly her father
was to blame for the lack of wooers. While granting her
absolute liberty, his personality wholly dominated her life,
monopolising all her thoughts and actions. Being so deeply
in love with him, it appeared as if she had no desire for any
other affection.
At midsummer in this year Wilkes made his brother-
in-law, George Hayley, one of the Sheriffs. Originally
manager to Samuel Storke, the first husband of the patriot’s
termagant sister, Hayley had obtained possession of a
lucrative business by manying the widow of his late master.
A quiet, amiable soul, with commerce as his chief joy, he
was content to be ruled by his wife at home, while allowing
Wilkes to shape his public career. By industry and in-
telligence he had amassed a large fortune. Having an
imbounded admiration for his famous relative he submitted
to the inevitable borrowings without complaint, considerii^
himself amply repaid by sharing some of the glory of his
reputation. Out of gratitude Wilkes had made him an
alderman and a member of Parliament.^
Although not an unattractive woman in early life the
> Tht Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, i. 325 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almoe, i- 4 .
passim^
,775] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON 293
tempestuous Mrs. Hayley bore a great resemblance to her
brother John, a likeness that grew more accentuated as
she advanced in years. All the family stood in awe of her
“ brimstone qualities.” It was believed that “ an out-
rageous quarrel ” with her mother in the sick-room of her
sister Sally had been the direct cause of the invalid’s death.^
Incessant headaches seem to have been the cause of many
of her explosions of wrath. Kind at heart but destitute of
self-control, she loved to augment her reputation for eccen-
tricity. Her handsome coach with four black horses was
driven faster than any other vehicle in the town. Fond
of attending all the remarkable trials, she would never
obey the judge’s request for women to withdraw from the
court, listening to the most unsavoury evidence without a
blush. While the unhappy Dr. Dodd was being condemned
to death for forgery she sat unconcerned in one of the
galleries of the Old Bailey, eating gingerbread nuts with a
tankard of negus by her side.® Despising her own sex
she sought the company of men, and being a brilliant
talker, like her brother, her society was in great request.
Even with her only daughter she was never on good
terms.® •
Poor Hiunphrey Cotes died during Wilkes’s mayoralty,
passing away on the ist of May while his old friend was
engaged in the altercation with the Lord Chamberlain.
Latterly the thriftless wine merchant had fallen upon more
prosperous days. In the winter of 1772, six years after
the death of his first wife, he had married the widow of
Savage Barrell of Vauxhall, whose husband had been a
’ Add. MS. 30,869, f. 158.
' Morning Post, Feb. 25, 1777.
“ The Sexagmarian, W. Beloe, i. 325-33 1 Historic Houses of Bath,
tt- E. Peach, pp. 5, 119-21 ; Recollections of Samuel Bred, pp. 109-14:
Old Farmer and his Almanack, G. L. Kittridge, pp. 10-14 : Works of Sir
1 -Reynolds, A. Graves and W. Cronin, iii. 1054. iv. 1436 ; Add. MSS. 30,869,
98; 30,872, f. 219; 30,879, f. 292; Moruitig Herald, Nov. 7, 1783 ;
Morning Post, Sept. 30, Dec. 7, 1784 1 April 27, July 21, 1785.
[>775
294 life of JOHN WILKES
wealthy Supporter of the Bill of Rights.* During the fol-
lowing summer Wilkes visited the pair at Littlehampton,
spending much of his holiday in their company, and the
two old comrades had remained on the best of terms for more
than twelve months afterwards. At the Westminster
election Cotes received his friend’s vote, although not re-
garded by the patriots as one of their official candidates.*
Then a little later came a quarrel, their first serious dis-
sension, and the breach was never healed. Soon after
becoming Lord Mayor the tolerant Wilkes, anxious for a
reconciliation, sent a friendly message to the offended Cotes,
suggesting that he should supply all the wine that was used
at the Mansion House. The proposal occasioned as neat a
retort as any that Wilkes ever uttered.
“ Have my wine,” returned the implacable Humphrey ;
" tell the Lord Mayor that he shall never have my wine —
even though I knew he would pay for it ! ” ®
Towards the close of his mayoralty, which had brought
him nothing hitherto but triumph and renown, Wilkes
exjjerienced one of the most painful humiliations of his
life. On the loth of October a footman came to the Mansion
House with a letter from Mr. John Bamar<f of Berkeley
Square, the valetudinarian son of a famous alderman of
London.^ Only a fortnight previously he had dined with
the Lord Mayor, to whom for obvious reasons he was a
persona grata, and Wilkes opened the communication without
the least uneasiness. Its contents staggered him. In
terms of bitter reproach his old friend announced that
Mrs. Barnard had made a confession of her infidelity.
The conscience of the guilty woman having been troubled
by a dream, in which the vision of her dead child had
* Public Advertiser, Dec. i, 1772.
* London Magasine (i774)» P- 509.
» Morning Post, April 17, 1775- , „ . j.-
* English Merchants, H. R. Fox Bourne, i. 425 ; Old and
E. Walford, iv. 333 ; ** Will of John Barnard,** P.C,C, 588, Rockiflg*^ »
Gentleman*s Magazine (17S5)) P- ^ 55 -
.775] LORD MAYOR OF LONDON , 295
appeared to her, she had flung herself upon her knees in
an agony of remorse and had told her husband that Wilkes
had betrayed his honour.^
Much distressed, for the wealthy recluse had been an
invaluable friend, Wilkes sent an evasive note to Barnard,
begging for an interview at the Mansion House. The other
replied that he was “ too ill to go out in the evening," sug-
gesting sternly that it was the Lord Mayor’s duty to call
on him. After some idle correspondence the appointment
was made, and Wilkes came to Berkeley Square. With
clever guile he made some show of sympathy, but ridiculed
the story of the daughter’s ghost, hinting that it was the
delusion of a hysterical woman, and protesting his own
innocence. Grim and inexorable, for he had good reason
for his suspicions, Barnard denied that his wife was de-
ranged, proposing, in order to disprove the insinuation, to
confront her with his visitor. Even the audacity of Wilkes
shrank from such an ordeal, and with some haughtiness he
declined.
A few days later the injured husband wrote again to
the Mansion House. No letter that Wilkes ever received *
can have galled him more sorely, although it was not the
bitter vituperation, but the disappointment of a long-
cherished expectation that caused his distress. In spite
of his infirmity poor Barnard was able to take an ample
revenge. Reiterating his belief in the truth of his wife’s
story he told Wilkes that he had lost " the sincerest, the
most affectionate and disinterested friend ’’ that he had
“ ever had in the whole world.” With the fretful hysteria
of the invalid he took a fierce joy in explaining how it was
in his power to impose an adequate punishment. Enclosing
a copy of his will, in which he had left Wilkes a sum of
£8000, as well as a collection of books and prints, worth
upwards of £ 2000 , he atmounced that these legacies had
been cancelled that morning.
> Add. MSS. 30,880, B. f. 30.
296 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.775
In a letter of vindication the dismayed Wilkes pro-
tested that the lady had made a false confession in order
that he should be disinherited. Yet unluckily for this
plea John Barnard was able to retort that his wife was
ignorant of the manner in which he intended to dispose
of his property. To this last communication Wilkes did
not venture to reply, but a few days later, with singular
effrontery, he sent “ a very fine ” hare with his compli-
ments to his eccentric friend. The present was returned
immediately, followed by a fresh tirade from the poor
recluse, lamenting that he had been so long “ the dupe oi
the most consummate villain.” For many months Wilkes
tried in vain to convince Mr. Barnard that he was innocent,
suggesting always that his wife had made her confession in
a moment of temporary insanity, but the other refused to
listen to his protests. Indeed the patriot’s guilt appears
to have been obvious. The only extenuation of his
treachery, if such it be, lies in the fact that Mrs. Barnard
had been his mistress before her marriage, as the injured
husband was well aware.^
' Letters from Mr. and Mrs, Barnard to Wilkes in Add. MSS. 30,880,
B. ff. 29-57 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, v. 24-8. •
CHAPTER XVII
IN THE HOUSE
1774-1782
W ITH the close of 1774 the tide in the affairs of
John Wilkes had reached its flood. After a
ceaseless struggle of more than five years his
faithful followers had succeeded in giving him
a place in the House of Commons ; at the third attempt they
had made him also the first magistrate of the City of London.
A hard-won triumph invariably calls forth great expecta-
tions, the victors looking forward to the enjoyment of the
fruits of conquest without undue delay, or anticipating at
least that their recompense shall be something more than
a barren honour. Hence the itmumerable instances where
the oscillation of the political pendulum is caused by the
disillusionment* of those who have striven for the unattain-
able or where the demagogue has been dethroned owing to
the disappointment of ambitions that he cannot gratify.
As soon as Wilkes was seated among the law-givers the new
party of progress waited impatiently for the fulfilment of
the hopes that he had held out to them. Not unnaturally
they believed that he would prove as puissant in the senate
as he had been in the market-place, expecting that his
legislative achievements would justify his promises.^ Since
his political programme was half a century in advance of
his age the aspirations of his followers were too exacting.
It was inevitable that disenchantment should follow and
^ So George Grenville bad prophesied on Feb. 3, 1769, in his great
speech in the House of Commons on Wilkes's expulsion, v, Pwliamein^y
History^ xvi. 546,
397
298 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.7;4
the tide of his popularity begin to ebb. That the dis-
enchantment was a gradual process and that the tide ebbed
very slowly was due wholly to his personal magnetism and
wonderful sagacity.
When Wilkes took his seat in the new House of Commons
on the 2nd of December, the Opposition regarded him with
little more favour than the ministry. Like all who have
repudiated the trammels of party discipline, he had com-
mitted a political offence almost as heinous and unforgive-
able as one who has deserted to the other side. The recent
dispute with Edmund Burke over the candidature for
Westminster had increased the mistrust of the Rockingham
faction.^ With the exception of Sir George Savile none of
the prominent Whig leaders would have any dealings with
him. In the Upper House there was no one but his fellow
symposiast, “the wicked” Lord Lyttelton, who could be
relied upon to give him assistance. Despite their anta-
gonism in city affairs Lord Shelburne was the only statesman
with whose policy he was in sympathy, but the enmity of
Oliver and Townsend made an alliance impossible. So he
stood alone with his little band of disciples, bearing the
ominous badge of independence like “ hay upon his horns,"
and every party was on its guard against him.
Undoubtedly his programme was intolerable to the
most progressive Whig. He vociferated still that "the
voice of the people is the voice of God.” Among his
followers the famous resolutions promulgated by the Sup-
porters of the BiU of Rights three years before continued
to be the test for all parliamentary candidates, who were
required to sign a declaration, promising to support a
drastic reform bill and other revolutionary measures.* Not
only were the terms of the required pledge abhorrent to
official Whiggism, but the principle itseU was regarded with
‘ Correspondence of E. Burke, i. 475-7.
* Middlesex Journal, Sept. 27-29, 1774; Letters of Junius (Bohn, I 90 ®)»
ii. 71-4 ; The Genesis of Parliamentary Reform, G. S. Veitch, p. 3*^
1774 ]
IN THE HOUSE
299
antipathy in the belief that it would reduce the repre-
sentatives of the people to the position of delegates. Yet
the great families who cherished the dogmas of "the
glorious revolution ” failed to realise that their views were
as retrogressive as those of the Wilkites were extreme,
and that, while the spirit of the age demanded that the
Member of Parliament should become more regardful of
his constituents, the relations between them might be
modified in harmony with the theory of the constitution.
To Wilkes is due the credit (if such it is) of being the first
to make the relationship between the representative and the
electors a more intimate one.’
The demagogue had now reached his forty-ninth birthday.
It was seventeen years ago that he had been first elected for
Aylesbury. Eleven years had passed since he sat in his
place in the House. During the whole of his political life
he had been a recognised member for only six years. In
spite of an occasional attack of ague he was in the full
vigour of manhood, cautious in diet and most abstemious,
careful to preserve his health by fresh air and exercise.®
Notwithstanding his previous failure as a parliamentary
orator his gre^t name gave him an assured position, and it
was inevitable that he should possess the ear of the House
whenever he chose to appeal to it.® Already a far more
formidable political force than Beckford or any other city
magnate ever had been, it needed but an alliance with one
of the segments of the Opposition to make him the leader
of a powerful faction. Old parliamentary hands, who
remembered when Chatham himself was equally obnoxious
to his king, must have watched the career of the present
demagogue at this time with a curious interest.
The ministers were disposed to be tolerant. Lord North,
' CoHsiUutional History of England, Ersldne May, ii. 70-2.
® Reminiscences of H. Angelo (1904), ii. 42 ; Recollections of S. Rogers
('887), p. 43. Old Court Suburb, LeighHant,!. 3T, Annual Register (1797),
P- 377 : European Magasitte, xxxiii. 165, 229.
’ Cf. Hist, and Post. Memoirs of Sir N. W. Wraxall (Wheatley), i. 48.
300 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.775
still the Premier, was the most genial of men, and the general
election had confirmed his great majority. At the polling-
booths everywhere the cry of " Wilkes and Liberty ” had
aroused little enthusiasm.* The member for Middlesex,
on the other hand, obliged to justify his position, was
eager for hostilities. With mischievous effrontery he spread
the rumour that he should propose one Robert Macreath,
member for Castle Rising, as Speaker, anticipating with
perfect foresight that the prospect of an ex-waiter at
Arthur’s becoming First Commoner of England would
throw George the Third into a fever of resentment.* And
in his first speech in the House he protested against the
anniversary of Charles the First’s execution being kept as
a day of mourning, declaring that “ it should be celebrated
as a festival, a day of triumph, not kept as a fast.” ® Like
a famous character in fiction, Wilkes was always much
perturbed by the mention of King Charles’s head.
Ever willing to suspend judgment in regard to one
whose reputation has been made outside the walls of
Parliament, the House was prepared to listen to him with
attention. Among its members there were many on both
sides who did not dislike him personally, though they loathed
his politics. All knew that he was too intelligent to conduct
himself at St. Stephen’s with the same rude arrogance that
he employed to subjugate the backsliders at Guildhall.
Notwithstanding his long intercourse with the humble cits,
it was obvious to the most critical that " Jack had the
manners of a gentleman,” uncorrupted by evil associations.
The old fastidiousness in attire was still unchanged, suits
of brilliant hues with much gold lace appearing alwa3rs on
dress occasions.* And for morning attire he continued to
1 History of England^ W. E. Lecky, iii. 525.
* Letters of George III to Lord North, i. 217 ; Letters of Wcdpol^
(Toynbee), ix. 102.
® The speeches of Mr. Wilkes (1786), p. i.
* Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, iii. 122 ; Boswell's Life of Johnson*
G. Birkbeck Hill, iii. 68.
,775-80] IN THE HOUSE 301
wear the scarlet coat of a militia colonel, with military
boots, his powdered hair fastened in a large bag, a button
and loop ornamenting his three-cocked hat. On his return
from Paris he had even been the pioneer of a strange new
fashion, introducing the custom of using blue hair powder.*
Wilkes made a dozen set speeches in the House between
1775 and 1776. During the next two years he spoke six-
teen times. In 1779 and 1780 he was reported at more or
less full length on fourteen occasions. Such exertions were
quite sufficient to assure his position as a prominent
parliamentarian in that leisurely age. Although he had
been labelled as “ a wretched speaker ” owing to his per-
functory efforts while member for Aylesbury, and was
handicapped by his reputation as a mob orator,* few of his
speeches offended the critical instincts of his fastidious
audience. Every word being carefully prepared and learnt
by rote, his rhetoric attained the high literary standard
that satisfied the expectations of the elect. Other masterly
speakers, like Lord North, were as imperfect in their utter-
ance and as uncouth in their delivery, while his ability as
an actor, combined with the wit, gaiety, and ttnimal spirits
of the man, more than compensated for the defects of his
elocution.® Though failing as before to become a great
debater, a gift seldom acquired without an arduous ap-
prenticeship in early youth, he invariably made his mark
on a full-dress occasion. One fatal fault, however, marred
his parliamentary reputation, an attitude that the House
of Commons has never tolerated. Whether intentionally
or not, Wilkes generally managed to convey the impression
of insincerity.
^ Recollections of John O'Keeffe^ i. io8 ; Reminiscences of H. Angelo
(1904), i. 42 ; Old Court Suburb , Leigh Hunt, i. 38.
* Letters of H, Walpole (Toynbee), vii. 178 ; Memoirs of the Reign of
^^oyge III, H. Walpole, i. 142.
/ For the best description of Wilkes as a parliamentary orator see
and Post, Memoirs of Sir N, W. Wraxall (Wheatley), i. 265 ; ii.
48-50 ; iii. 178 ; v. 2-3. There is an excellent appreciation in Fraser Rae's
^ilhes^ Sheridan^ and Fox^ pp. 102-114.
302 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,„5
It was more essential for him than for any other poli-
tician to demonstrate that he was in earnest. All through his
public career the censorious had condemned him as a hypo-
crite, ringing changes upon the familiar jibe that “ accident
had made him a patriot.” Nevertheless his delight in
badinage caused him to assume the role in which his enemies
wished him to appear, and he loved to turn the shafts of his
wit against either his creed or his disciples.^ The early
jest in which he declared that he was proposing a motion
merely “ to please the fellows who followed him ” was
believed to have been the true explanation of his attitude
towards most important questions* Ministerial news-
papers are able to allege with plausibility that it was his
habit to refer to his constituents as “ the Middlesex fools.” ’
On one occasion when the House was about to adjourn
he asked permission to make a speech, on the plea that he
had sent a copy to the Public Advertiser, and that it was
absurd for it to be printed without having been delivered.*
His frequent murmurs against the heterodoxy of the clergy
sounded as the merest cant in the mouth of such a notorious
profaner of sacred things.®
The first serious speech that he delivered ill the House of
Commons was made in support of a motion that was moved
by Alderman Sawbridge “ for shortening the duration of
Parliaments,” a favourite panacea with the primitive
Radicals.® According to the Town and Country Magazine he
“ particularly distinguished himself.” ’’ On three occasions
during the same year he spoke vehemently and at great
length against the measures that were being used to coerce
the rebellious colonists in America. Each of these set
‘ Ct. Life of Lord Sidmouth, G. Pellew, i. 76-7.
* Journal of the Reign of George ///, H. Walpole, i. 465.
® Morning Post^ Feb. 2, 1780.
* Records of my Life^ J. Taylor, i. 114.
® Speeches on April 28, 1777; March 10 and 15. April 20, 17791
Morning Post, May 3, 1777, ; March 18 and 24, 1779.
* Parliamentary History, xviii. 217.
’ Town and Country Magazine, vii. 73.
,775] IN THE HOUSE 303
orations, in the words of a critic, was “ spirited, classic,
and stamped with the characteristic energy of his fearless
mind.” * Not unfrequently they had the true ring of elo-
quence. “A successful resistance,” he declared, “is a
revolution, not a rebellion. Rebellion indeed appears on
the back of a flying enemy, but revolution flames on the
breast-plate of the victorious warrior. Who can tell, sir,
whether in consequence of this day’s violent and mad
address to His Majesty the scabbard may not be thrown
away by them as well as by us ; and, should success attend
them, whether in a few years the independent Americans
may not celebrate the glorious era of the revolution of 1775,
as we do that of 1688. The generous efforts of our fore-
fathers for freedom heaven crowned with success, or their
noble blood had dyed our scaffolds like that of Scottish
traitors and rebels, and the period of our history which
does us most honour would have been deemed a rebellion
against the lawful authority of the prince, not a resistance
authorised by all the laws of God and man, not the expulsion
ot a tyrant.” *
Under no delusion with regard to the source of the
trouble, he reiterated that the colonists were defending the
principle that there should be no taxation without repre-
sentation. “ I call the war with our brethren in America
an unjust, felonious war, because the primary cause and
confessed origin of it is to attempt to take their money from
them without their consent, contrary to the common rights
of all mankind, and those great fundamental principles of
the English constitution for which Hampden bled.” ® like
Chatham he foresaw that the Government had undertaken
a hopeless task. " We are fighting for the subjection, the
unconditional submission, of a country infinitely more
extended than our own, of which every day increases the
' Hist, and Post. Memoirs of Sir N. W. Wraxall (Wheatley), i. 265.
‘ Speeches of Mr. Wilkes (1786), pp. 16-17 : Parliamentary History,
’'''“i- 238.
’ Speeches of Mr. Wilhes, p. 42 ; Parliamentary History, xviU. 734.
304 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1775
wealth, the natural strength, the population. Should we
not succeed, it will be a loss never enough to be deplored,
a bosom friendship soured to hate and resentment. . .
Success, final success, seems to me not equivocal, not un-
certain, but impossible. However we may differ among
ourselves, they are perfectly united. On this side the
Atlantic party-rage unhappily divides us, but one soul
animates the vast northern continent of America, the general
congress and each provincial assembly.” * Apparently the
ministry wished as usual to label him as a mere buffoon.
“ The Lord Mayor," wrote Germain, the new Secretary for
the Colonies, “ was petulant and scurrilous, which occasioned
a loud laugh instead of any indignation in the House.” ^
In a speech a month later on the American question,
Wilkes made a bitter attack upon this same minister, who,
when Lord George Sackville, had been accused of cowardice
in the Seven Years’ War; through his failure to lead his
troops into action at the battle of Minden. “ After a very
bloody campaign you have conquered only one hiU of less
than a mile’s circumference. . . . Would the noble lord,
whom His 'Majesty has lately raised to one of the highest
civil offices, if he were sent on a military sdtvice, would he
venture, even at the head of the whole British cavalry, to
advance ten miles into the country ? ” ® With prophetic
instinct he foretold the issues of the struggle. "The
Americans will dispute every inch of territory with you,
every narrow pass, every strong defile, every Thermopyl®.
every Bunker’s Hill. A train of most unfortunate events
will probably ensue, and the power of recruiting, perhaps
subsisting, your weakened forces, at such a distance, he
lost. . . . The Americans, sir, are a pious and religious
people. With much ardour and success they follow the
first great command of Heaven, ‘ Be fruitful and multiply-
* Speeches, pp. 44-5 ; Parliamentary History, xviil. 735 -
* Hist. MSS. Comm., Stopford-Sackville MS. i. I 37 ‘
* Speeches of Mr. Wilkes (1786), p. 49.
,776] IN THE HOUSE 305
While they are fervent in these devout exercises, while the
men continue enterprising and healthy, the women kind and
prolific, all your attempts to subdue them by force will be
ridiculous and unavailing, will be regarded by them with
scorn and abhorrence. . . . They set out like a young heir
with a noble landed estate, unencumbered with enormous
family debts ; while we appear the poor, old, feeble and
exhausted, and ruined parent, but exhausted and ruined by
our own wickedness, prodigality; and profligacy.” ‘ In the
mouth of Burke or Chatham such imagery might have
thrilled the auditors. From the lips of Wilkes it could not
fail to raise a smile.
On the 2ist of March of the following year he moved his
long-expected motion for leave to introduce his Reform
Bill, making, in the words of the Public Advertiser, " a very
ingenious and public-spirited speech.” * It was his pri-
vilege to be the ^t politician to propose a large extension of
the franchise and a drastic redistribution of seats. Laying
down the proposition that the representation of the people
in Parliament had become “ insufficient, partial; and unjust,*'
he contended that originally it '* was foulTded by our
ancestors in jfistice, wisdom; and equality. ... It becomes
our duty,” he argued, ” to restore to the people their clear
rights, their original share in the legislature.” ® Although
formulating no detailed plans, he made it plain that his
proposals were comprehensive enough to satisfy the most
ambitious reformer. ” I do not mean, sir, at this time,”
he observed, " to go into a tedious detail of all the various
proposals. . . . When the bill is brought in and sent to a
committee it will be the proper time to examine all the
nrinutiae of this great plan. ... I will at this time, sir, only
tlu-ow out general ideas, that every free agent in this
kingdom should, in my wish, be represented in Parliament ;
* Speeches, pp. 50-a ; Parliamentory History, xviii, 1009-10.
’ -PuiKc Advertiser, March 22, 1776.
• Speeches of Mr. WMes, pp. 37, 61 ; PtsrUsuimtsiry History, xviU.
1288, 1291,
u
306 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.7^6
that the metropolis, which contains in itself a ninth part of
the people, and the counties of Middlesex, York and others,
which so greatly abound with inhabitants, should receive
an increase in their representation ; that the mean and in-
significant boroughs, so emphatically styled ‘ the rotten part
of our Constitution,’ should be lopped ofi, and the electors
in them thrown into the counties ; and the rich, populous,
trading towns, Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds,
and others, be permitted to send deputies to the great council
of the nation.” *
In the course of his speech he could not resist a sinister
but irrelevant jibe at his old enemy Lord George Germain,
paraphrasing the celebrated expression, used by Lord
Chatham at the time of the Seven Years’ War, that he
“ had conquered America in Germany.”
” East Grinstead,” sneered Wilkes, pointing to the
Colonial Secretary, “has only about thirty electors, yet gives a
seat among us to that brave, heroic lord at the head of a great
civil department, now very military; who has fully deter-
mined to conquer America — hut not in Germany." * Lord
North replied to the fulminations of the demagogue in
terms of banter, invariably tolerant towards \he whimsical
antagonist, who on his side never showed any malice against
his persecutors. Moreover, it seemed the best policy not
to t^eat him seriously.*
Wilkes was now staggering beneath a fresh burden of
debt, owing in a large measure to the fact that his expendi-
ture while he was Lord Mayor had exceeded his receipts by
more than £3000. All sorts of expedients were necessary to
raise money. The docile Bull being able no longer to accept
* Speeches, pp. 67-8; Parliamentary History, xviii. M94-5J
Genesis of Parliamentary Reform, G. S, Veitch, pp. 44-6 ; ConstiMiff^
History of England, Erskine May, i. 394 ; English Constitutional Hi^hfry*
T. P. Taswell-Langmead, p. 734.
* Speeches of Mr, Wilkes, p. 58; Parliamentary History » xviii*
Letters of H, Walpole (Toynbee), ix. 339.
* Parliamentary History, xviii. 1*98; GenUeman*$ Magtuim
p. 140.
,776-77] IN THE HOUSE 307
his drafts, he was glad to receive loans from an unknown
admirer, named Samuel Cutler, who corresponded with him
anonymously under the sobriquet of “ Philo-Wilkes.” Dis-
honoured notes of hand, bearing his signature, often found
their way to the office of Peter Fountain of Maiden Lane,
the last of his long line of solicitors. In the hope that the
Corporation of London would come to his rescue; he published
the balance-sheet of his mayoralty, pleading that “ it surely
becomes the honour of the city to support the proper ex-
penses ” of the Lord Mayor and the Sheriffs " without loss
or prejudice to their families.” Being a member of the
House of Commons, he was protected against arrest by the
privilege of Parliament, and, after striving without success
to obtain a promise of payment, at last his creditors adopted
the unusual course of presenting a petition to the Court of
Common Council, praying for the discharge of all the debts
that he had contracted at the Mansion House.*
When his embarrassments first began to press, he had
amazed his friends by offering himself as candidate for the
Chamberlainship of London, a most lucrative office that
fell vacant in February 1776, owing to the retirement of
Sir Stephen Janssen. Since he had always affected to be
wholly indifferent to " a place,” and had made a public
statement in the days of the old Bill of Rights Society that
he would never occupy this particular position, his change
of attitude was regarded by some of his followers as the
most rank apostasy.* Many of his warmest admirers
wished his candidature to fail, while the vindictive Oliver
used all his powers of intrigue against him. Owing to this
dissension among the patriots, the ministerial party gained
* Add. MSS. 30,878, ff. I, 6, 8, 14, 17, 19, *3. 4<*. 44i 56, 63, 83, 9a ;
life of Wilkes^ J, Almon, v. 82-3 ; London and the Kingdomt R. R. Shaipe,
iii. 162-4 : Public Advertiser, June 19, 1776 ; Morning Post, June 24,
*776; Oct. 24. Nov. I, X777; Gentleman's Magazine (1777)1 P* 5o6;
london Magazine (1777), p. 53«-
* f'he Gazetteer, May 30, 1771 ; Correspondence of Edmund Burke, ii.
ui.
308 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES 11776-77
an easy triumph. Benjamin Hopkins, a prosperous mer-
chant in Broad Street, who had undertaken the hazardous
task of opposing Wilkes, was returned at the head of the
poll by nearly four hundred votes.* Nor was the result
due to chance. When his rival had to submit himself for
re-election at the following midsummer the demagogue
challenged him once more, muttering dark complaints of
bribery and corruption ; but though he put forth all his
powers, he was defeated by a majority almost three times as
large as the previous one.* There was a similar result when
he came forward as a candidate in the following year,
notwithstanding that it was unusual to oppose the Cham-
berlain unless he were guilty of misconduct. On this
occasion the patriots satirised their opponent as " Vulture ”
Hopkins, alleging that he was an unscrupulous money-
lender, who made large profits out of minors, and the
ministers in alarm were inclined to prohibit the production
of a new comedy called The School for Scandal, fearing that
the satire upon usury might prejudice the chances of their
candidate. For the third time, however, Wilkes was
beaten decisively, polling only 1228 votes against 2132.’
For the moment the Livery of London s^med to have
changed its allegiance. Addressing the House of Commons
later in the year on the question of concluding peace with
America, the demagogue lamented that the country was
“ still bleeding at every vein.” *
” I deny that,” interposed the jovial Richard Rigby,ami&t
a general laugh ; “ the city of London has stopped bleeding!” ‘
‘ Public Advertiser, Feb. 7, 9, 15, 17, 19, ai-4, 36-9 ; Mafch 3 , * 75 ® >
Journal of Reign of George III, H. Walpole, ii. 3 i.
* Public Advertiser, June 30-1, 35-9; July 1-3, 5, * 77 ® >
Post, June 35-8 ; July 5, 1776 ; Gentleman’s Magarine (*776), W* ***’
333 ; Town and Country Magatine, viii. pp. 334, 387. ,
’ Morning Post, June so, 35-8, 30: July *, 3, *777: *^*"****^*
Magasitui (1777), p. 34 ®: London Magasine (1777), p. 3331 Shertdaa,
Walter Sichel, i. 550.
* Speeches of Mr. Wilkes, p. *79. ‘
* Morning Post, Nov. 38, *777.
IN THE HOUSE
1777-78]
309
Although this last insolvency was a serious hindrance
to his Parliamentary activity, doing irreparable damage
also to his social prestige, Wilkes continued to strike many
a vigorous blow on behalf of "the principles of the Revolu-
tion.” Still believing, as he had declared many years before,
that the character of George III was a composition of
“ hyprocrisy, meanness, ignorance, and insolence,” he lost
no opportunity of making an attack upon him.^ In a debate
on the civil list, in the spring of 1777, his criticism of the king’s
expenditure surpassed the most audacious of his previous
utterances. " How then, sir, has this debt been con-
tracted ? ” he thundered. “ There are no ottheard and
visible signs of grandeur and expense. I will tell the House
what is said without doors. . . . The nation, sir, suspects
that the regular ministerial majorities in Parliament are
bought . . . that in one instance we attend to the evan-
gelical precept, ‘ give, and it shall be given unto you,’ and
the Crown has made a purchase of this House with the
money of the people. Hence the ready, tame, and servile
compliance to every royal edict issued by the minister.
Inward corruption is the canker which gnaws Ihe vitals of
Parliament, it is almost universally believed, sir, that
the debt has been contracted in corrupting the representa-
tives of the people.” * All knew that the charge, formulated
so eloquently, was a true one. None but a man who was
inspired by a great cause would have dared to accuse his
king in the presence of the whole nation. It was at such
nioments that Wilkes rose to his loftiest heights.
StiU more greatly daring, he sought leave to bring in
a bill in the following year " to prevent the dangerous and
unconstitutional practice of . . . granting money to the
*-rown , . . without the consent of Parliament.” Besides
^ing a studied attack upon the king, this was as bold a
, Papers, ii, 73-4.
H wf^**'*** ^‘^***» ; JourtuU of Reign of George III,
• Walpole, ii. no ; Town and Country Magasine, ix, 337-8.
310 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES 1,778
challenge to public opinion as his reprobation of Press
Warrants. In an outburst of military enthusiasm many
of the provincial towns had raised a regiment for service
in America or for protection against French invasion, the
officers of which regiments, by a promise from the Secretary
for War, were to be entitled to half-pay. “ These absolute
engagements for public money to be afterwards voted by
Parliament,” protested Wilkes, "were made in direct
violation of the rights of the representatives of the people,
and are contrary to both the spirit and letter of this murdered
constitution.” ^ It was a speech of some merit, earning
the support of Burke, but is chiefly memorable as an in-
stance of Wilkes’s indifference to popular odium when
principle obliged him to defy it.
A few days later, in a debate on the Royal Annuity Bill,
he found a fresh opportunity of letting loose the shafts of
his wit against George the Third, in allusion to the wonderful
fecundity of the king and queen, who, after sixteen years
of married life, had already no less than twelve children.
" The gratitude of this House to heaven increases every
year,” he exclaimed in mock solemnity, "with the for-
tunately prolific annual increase of the royal offspring. We
triumph in those endearing pledges of our monarch’s love,
and the public felicity which an all-bounteous Providence
continues to bestow on this peculiarly favoured nation.
The kingdom at large contemplate with rapture His Majesty s
numerous, and still, I hope, increasing progeny, as insuring
even beyond our children’s children, to the nati natorufH, ^
qui nascentur ab Ulis, the blessings and glories of his reign.
This was pure farce, Uke much of his conduct when h®
humour eclipsed his good taste, and farce of this Ipnu
has never been held in great esteem in the House of
Commons.
* Speeches, p. 238 ; Parliamentary History, xlx. 1001 ; Momiisf
April 4, 1778. ' . w
• Speeches, p. 255 ; Parliamentary History, xix. loSl i /****^
Reign of George III, H. Walpole, ii. ajs-
,7791 IN THE HOUSE 311
No phase of his public life is more admirable than his
attitude towards religious liberty. Not only did he help
to relieve the dissenting teachers and ministers from sub-
scription to any of the Thirty-nine Articles, but in three
eloquent speeches he spoke earnestly in favour of “an
universal toleration.” To the Catholic and to the Methodist
alike, he was an equal friend. " I would not," he asserted
in a felicitous phrase, " persecute even the Atheist. I think
he has a right to toleration, and, for my own part, I pity him,
for he wants the consolation which I enjoy.” ^ Another of
his aphorisms was equally appropriate ; “ Religion,” he
declared, “ should teach us the most refined humanity,
and all her ways should be peace. The bigot is seldom the
virtuous, the meek, the amiable, or the learned character.” *
For the dissenting clerg3nnan he had the highest praise.
" I will venture, sir, to affirm,” he declared, “ that there
are not in Europe men of more liberal ideas, more general
knowledge, more cultivated understanding, and in aU respects
men better calculated to form the rising generation, to give
the State wise and virtuous citizens, than the doctors Price,
Priestley, and Kippis. Yet the rod of persecution hangsi
over them l[jy a single thread, if they do' not subscribe
thirty-five articles and a half to omr Church.” * Towards
the Catholics, actuated in this instance by no political bias,
he showed the vwdest sympathy. " I think it would do
honour to our Church,” he pleaded, “ to treat with tender-
ness all those who are unhappy enough not to be in her
bosom. I admire the temper with which the late indul-
gences to the Roman Catholics were received Our
master has told us, in the largest and most general terms,
that ‘ where two or three are gathered together in His name
He was in the midst of them.' ” * There was a ring of truth
in all his speeches on religious questions, which, had his love
* Speeches, p. 330 ; Parliamentary History, xx. 312.
• Speeches, p. 336 ; Parliamentary History, xx. 316.
• Speeches, p. 333 ; Parliamentary History, xx, 313.
* Speeches, p. 321 ; Parliameniary History, xx. 245.
312 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.777-78
oi liberty not been identified with a love of licence, must
have convinced his audience of his sincerity.
Wilkes was one of the first statesmen of his day to
realise the importance of establishing a national library on
an adequate scale. At the first opportunity he endeavoured
to persuade the House of Commons to recognise the obliga-
tions of literature. " It is a general complaint,” he observed,
“ that the British Museum is not sufficiently accessible to
the public. This must necessarily happen from the defi-
ciency of their revenues. The trustees cannot pay a proper
numW of officers and attendants. . . . But, sir, I wish
their plan much enlarged, especially on two important
objects. Books and Paintings. . . . London has no large
public library. The best here is the Royal Society’s : but
even that is inconsiderable ; neither is it open to the public.
. . . The British Museum, sir, is rich in Manuscripts . . .
but it is wretchedly poor in printed books. I wish, sir, a
sum was allowed by Parliament for the purchase of the
most valuable editions of the best authors, and an Act
passed to oblige every printer, under a certain penalty,
to send a copy of every publication he made to the
British Museum.” * The privilege that Wilke^ desired the
national library to enjoy had been granted by Parlia-
ment in the reign of Charles II, but the law was notoriously
evaded, and sixty-five years passed by before a new
Copyright Act confirmed the original intention of the
legislature.
In the summer of 1778 Wilkes offered himself cmce mwe
as a candidate for the Chamberlainship of London; in oppo-
sition to Benjamin Hopkins. For the fourth time he suffered
a crushing defeat, the majority against him being nine
hundred, many of the voters resenting his persistency in
defying tradition by seeking to eject the holder of an office
* Speeches, pp. 141-2 ; Town and Country Magaxine, lx. 239 ; Homing
Post, May 3, 1777: Withes, Sheridan, Fox, W. Fraser Rae, pp. ro 8 - 9 I
C. Elliot Brown in Ncdes and Queries, jth series, viii. 225.
,7791 IN THE HOUSE 313
that was usuaUy enjoyed for life.* In the following year
he was wise enough to allow his rival to be re-elected un-
opposed, apparently having abandoned all hope of gaining
the coveted position. A few months later, however, the
office became vacant again owing to the death of Hopkins,
a lucky chance for Wilkes, who was almost at the end of
bis resources. So great was his poverty that "he was
sometimes distressed for a guinea,” but with cheerful
courage he continued to assure friends that he " had his own
good spirits to feed and clothe him.” If asked what he
intended to do, " Nothing,” he had alwa3rs replied, “ I
must still hang upon the chapter of accidents and wait to
drive the first nail that offers.” * With the new vacancy
for the Chamberlainship came the desired opportunity.
The prospect of his election no longer caused disunion
amongst his followers, all being now agreed that the
opportunity had come of rewarding the patriot for his
services. Richard Oliver, too, was in the West Indies,
broken in health and wealth, so the most formidable of his
enemies was removed from his path. This time he was
chosen by an overwhelming majority, his opponent, William
Jones of Serjeant’s Inn, who had been selected as the
ministerial candidate, retiring from the field on the third
day in a minority of nearly two thousand. In the case of
the Middlesex election Wilkes was obliged to engage in
five contests before he gained his seat. It was at the fifth
attempt also that he became Chamberlain of London.*
During the whole of the American War Wilkes continued
to be a most zealous friend of the United States, advocat-
®g the discontinuance of hostilities at every opportunity,
* Imdon and the Kingdom, R. G. Sharpe, iii. 163 ; Morning Pott,
July 2, 1778 ; Gintiima»*s MagoMine {1778), p. 330.
* Life of Wilkes, J, Almon, v. 82 ; European Moiosine, xxxiii. 228 ;
of London, B. Lambert, iv. 466.
Morning Post, Nov. 17-19, 23, 25, 1779; CenUeman*s Magasine
y 79), p. 610 ; Lady's Magasine (1779)1 PP« 614-15 ; Town and Country
^<^mne, xi. 614; Life of Wilhu, J. Almon, iv. 200; Utters of Mrs.
V. 4^3.
314 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i;/;-;,
striving to persuade the ministers that they had undertaken
a hopeless task. Between 1775 and 1780, the years of his
greatest parliamentary activity, he delivered ten set speeches
in the House of Commons in favour of peace. " Let us treat
with the liberal spirit of freemen and Englishmen,’’ he
pleaded at an early stage of the struggle. “ Unconditional
submission is unconstitutional submission, and becomes only
the slaves of an arbitrary monarch. Force against the vast
American continent, we have found, avails nothing. All
coercion appears to be impossible. The attempts of violence
have been followed with deep distress, disgrace, shame,
and disappointment. Let us, therefore, at last, hear and
obey the voice of reason, which calls aloud upon us to save
ourselves and our brethren.” ^ The employment of Indians
as auxiliaries by the British generals excited his bitter
wrath, and he drew many lurid pictures of massacres by
scalping-knife and tomahawk.* After the disaster of Sara-
toga he demanded “an immediate cessation of arms”
unconditionally. “ It may save the fragments of this
dismembered empire,” he prophesied, “ for I own I shall
tremble fon the fate of Canada, nearly lost three years
ago, as well as for Nova Scotia, the two Floddas, and even
the West Indian islands, if the powerful confederation
of the thirteen United Colonies continues.” * In language
of the bitterest scorn he emphasised the obvious truth that
the Americans were resolved to maintain their independence.
" They no longer consider themselves as embarked with
us on board this sinking vessel of State,” he tdd the
House of Commons later in the year. " They avoid us ss
a tyrannical, unprincipled, rapacious, and ruined naticw-
Their only fear is that the luxury and profligacy of this
country should gain their people.” * During the fdloW'
ing autumn, when opposing a vote of thanks to Lo»
> Speeches of Mr. Wilkes, p. 191 ; ParliametOary History, «*■ 4*®’
• Speeches, pp. 187, 188, 199, 226-9, *7°. 27*» 276. 303*
• SpucheSf p. 230 ; Parliamentary History y xix. 815.
• Speeches, p. 299 ; Parliamentary History y xix. 1335.
,;80] IN THE HOUSE 315
Cornwallis and other commanders, he summed up in
one phrase the whole reason of his opposition to the
war. " Every friend of the constitution saw early in
the support of the American cause a vindication of the
rights of Englishmen against an old exploded usurpation
of the Stuarts, revived under the third prince of the House
of Brunswick.” ^ With equal truth he might have added
that the same emotions which aroused the struggle on behalf
of " Wilkes and Liberty ” had inspired the Americans to
fight for their independence.
In the month of September 1780 he was returned
again at the general election for the county of Middlesex
without opposition, his colleague being George Byng, ex-
member for Wigan, who had been prevented by a party
trick from gaining the seat on the death of Sergeant Glynn
twelve months previously.* Henceforth Wilkes addressed
the House of Commons less frequently, weary no doubt
of appealing to unsympathetic ears. An immense egoism,
such as his, being as sensible of incompetence as of ability,
he must have been aware of his true position in Parliament. »
Having failed to acquire the art of extempore rhetoric he
inspired no apprehension in debate, while his set orations,
although often of superb eloquence, invariably had failed to
convince as heretofore. So he sat silent and alone, calling
himself " an exhausted volcano,” • regarding his isolation
with cheery indifference, a little scornful, perhaps, in his
secret soul that a glib fluency should be one of the chief
credentials of statecraft.
Yet, notwithstanding his incapacity as an impromptu
speaker, he might have reached the foremost rank among
' Speeches^ p. 559 ; Parliamentary History^ xxi, 892 ; Hist and Post*
Memoirs of Sir AT. W* Wraxall (Wheatley), i. 265 ; Gentleman's Magaiine
(^781), p. 202.
* The Unref armed House of Commons, E. Porritt, i, 247 ; Morning
Tost, Oct. 13, 27, 29, 1779 ; Add. MS. 30.875> wi.
* The Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, ii. 9; ’The Oracle, Dec. 29, 1797;
Morning Post, April 3, 1788.
3i6 life of JOHN WILKES f78o
his fdlow-senators, as many have done whose taints were
f 4 r less splendid than his own, had this been the sole
hindrance to his progress. The incidents of his career,
however, reveal other causes. At the close of his mayoralty,
in spite of all his art, his name began to lose its magic charm,
except to the ears of his faithful constituents, and his
prestige in Parliament was diminished in direct ratio to the
decadence of his popularity. The petty squabbles of city
politics, in which he was often a central figure, converted
many loyal supporters into bitter antagonists. Attached
to no party, always changing his friends, believed to be
unscrupulous in regard to women and dishonest in money
affairs, never free, moreover, from pecuniary distress, all
the odium that lack of character attaches to a man rested
upon him. Great though he was, Wilkes had not the
supreme greatness which perseveres to the end. Since
the future seemed to offer no prospect of parliamentary
recompense to a person in his position, a foe alike to every
party as well as to the king, he saw no reason to exhaust
his energies in pursuing a chimera. Even had he realised
that his reputation for insincerity was his heaviest incum*
brance, it is doubtful whether he possessed sufficient self*
restraint in these later years to change his habitual
demeanour. Thus, although endowed with most of the
attributes of the parliamentarian, with health, coun^,
and the gift of making a great oration on a great occasion,
inspired by a noble cause, and, at the outset, an idol of the
people, he failed to become a dominant power in the House
of Commons. No man, who has written his name so
indelibly in the Statute Book, was ever as rmsuccessful in
Parliament, and with his failure “the Crown devolved
upon the King of England.”
For eight years in succession Wilkes continued to bring
forward his famous “ annual motion,” proposing that the
resolution of the 17th of February, 17^, which dedared
him incapable of being elected a member of Parlianiiwl^
,;82] IN THE HOUSE 317
should be expunged from the journals of the House.^ At
last, on the 3rd of May, 1782, it was "resolved in the
affirmative,” one hundred and fifteen members voting in
its favour and only forty-seven against it, the principle
that the electorate shall be free to choose its own repre-
sentatives, for which the member for Middlesex had struggled
so long, being finally vindicated.® The Whig party was
now in power, with Lord Rockingham as Premier, the late
ministry having been driven from office by the triumph
of the Americans. " I have now the happiness," declared
Wilkes, in proposing this last of his annual motions, “ of
seeing the Treasury Bench filled with the friends of the
constitution, the guardians and lovers of liberty." One
of these friends, however, and he a giant among them, was
unwilling to expunge the resolution. Alone among “ lovers
of liberty ” Charles James Fox, the new Secretary of State,
spoke against the motion, contending that the House of
Commons (or, in other words, the Government inspired by
the king) had been justified in expelling the member for
Middlesex, “ a privilege too valuable to be given up ” ;
but, although voting with the minority, he admitted that
he would not ’preserve the privilege if “ the voice of the
people " was against it.* Certainly, an ingenious attempt
on the part of a convert to harmonise expediency with
principle.
The idea of rewarding Wilkes for his incomparable
services to the Whig party by giving him a Govenunent
office had never entered the heads of the Whig leaders.
Such an appointment would have been refused with indig-
nation by the king, and therefore no charge of ingratitude
^ The following are the dates of Wilkes's annual motion: Feb. 22,
J 775 ; April 30, 1776 ; April 29, 1777 ; March la, 1778 ; Feb. 18, 1779 ;
March 15, 1780 ; April 5, 1781 ; May 3, 1782.
* Speeches of Mr, Wilkes^ p. 373 ; Parliamentary History ^ xxii. 1407 ;
Mrnal of House of Commons, xxxviii. 977 ; Hist, and Post. Memoirs of Sir
M'. WrMail (Wheatley), ii. *96 ; Morning Hercid, May 4, 178a.
Parliamentary History, xxii. 1410 ; Jonmai of the Reign of George
Third, H, Walpole, ii. 542.
3i8 life of JOHN WILKES
on account of the omission can be levied against Lord
Rockingham. Such an independent auxiliary could not be
regarded as having so great a claim upon him. Under any
circumstance the elevation of one who did not belong to
" the charmed circle of hereditary legislators ” would have
been an unusual phenomenon. By now, too, his popularity
was no longer a menace, and he was becoming a silent
member. Hence, the man to whom the Government was
indebted far more deeply than even to Burke or to Fox,
and who, with the exception of these two statesmen, would
have been the greatest among the ministers, had he been
one of them, sat neglected on the back benches. For
many years later it was still possible to repudiate the most
formidable tribune of the people.
But although office was closed against him he might
have been rewarded with some post of profit. Apparently,
he was not entirely hopeless of receiving such a recognition,
for he sent a letter to congratulate Lord Rockingham as
soon as his appointment was announced in the Gazette,
and when Lord Shelburne succeeded as Premier a few
months laterdie transferred his allegiance to the new leader,
his hostility towards the old antagonist ih city pCditics
having died away since his election as Chamberlain.^ Still,
no attempt was made to provide him with a place. In
this respect the Whigs of every denomination were equally
ungrateful.
‘ Add. MS. 30,872, f. 190; Morning Herald, August 10 and *•,
October 32, November 13, 1782.
CHAPTER XVIII
SOCIAL AFFAIRS
1776-1783
P OLLY WILKES cared little for politics. In her
letters to her father they are seldom mentioned ;
in his letters to her there is almost the same
reticence.* Perhaps she understood with feminine
intuition that there was nothing more to be gained by
him in Parliament, and that his fame, for good or evil,
was unalterably established. All her correspondence is
devoted to social matters, containing pleasant gossip con-
cerning friends and relatives. Whenever he was away
from home upon one of his constant jaunts to Bath or
Brighton she wrote to him several times a week, full of
anxiety if he h^ been indisposed, taking a cheerful interest
in his adventures when he was well. While he was absent,
just as if he were at her side, she continued to give him
udvice in regard to his health, telling him to take his medicine
and when and when not he might bathe in the sea.*
Wilkes, on his side, was equally affectionate in his letters
to Polly. With the playful gallantry that he invariably
assumed towards her he tells her that he is going " to drink
the health of a most amiable young lady in Prince’s Court,"
or calls her his " sweet Euphrosyne," or speaks of " that
•^r, happy day " on which she was bom.* " I have a
'daughter," he writes, in acknowledging a present that die
* This omission is noticed in Tk0 Genesis of Parliamentary Reform,
‘•rG.S.Veitch,p.44«.
j e g. Lift of Wilhs, J, Almon, iv. 167, 169, 171, *73.
L^n of Wilkes to His Dm^hter, ii. la, 38, 41.
319
320 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [t;;;-;*
had sent him, “ the sweetest-tempered girl in the world,
generous and noble-minded. She gives me both a puree
and money, and writes me at the same time the prettiest,
most elegant compliment possible, of more value tliau all
the purses and money in the world, not equalled since the
time of Madame de Sevignd. The purse I shall keep as long
as I live ; the money I shall lay out at Bath as a souvenir
for her of one of the politest and most obliging actions I
ever knew. I must always add, happy, happy father in
such a daughter.” ^
In their conununications to one another the two were
almost as intimate and confidential as husband and wife.
When Polly wrote to announce that the mistress of thar
eccentric friend Lauraguais had “ given him a daughter,”
adding, “ I am sorry it is not a son,” Wilkes replied that
the Count “ would probably console himself as the two
friends in La Fontaine’s Contes do,” * a startling reflection
upon the Frenchman’s morality. Upon the birth of Marie
Antoinette’s first child Miss Wilkes naively declared in ha
next letter to her father, “ II faut esp6rer que son augnste
6poux sera ‘plus haUle la premiere fois.” To which the
merry patriot responded with reproach, “Lomment done,
est-ce que je n’ai pas 6t6 bien haUU, quand j’ai fait tin
chef-d’oeuvre neuf mois avant votre naissance. . . .? Et
vx)us, petit ange, vous osez me reprocher que je ne suis
assez habiU!"* Some years later, when one of thar
acquaintances, named Mrs. Swinburne, expected to become
a mother, Wilkes informed his daughter that he had “ sent
a hen-pheasant to Blenheim Street to her, if that event
has not yet happened, and if it has, for Mr. Swinburne,
for haviv% done his duty.” * Plain talk such as this, whid*
has aroused the wrath of the modem Puritan, was a
» Letters of Wilkes to His Daughter ^ ii. 43.
• Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon, iv. 251 ; LeUers of Wilkei HU .
ii. 34 ; Add. MS. 30,879, f. 236 ; cf. (Euvres d$ La FoMaiim (t 8 ^ 7 )i j
Letters of Wilkes to His Daughter, ii. 132.
Letters of Wilkes to His Daughter, iii. 244.
,77S] SOCIAL AFFAIRS 321
consequence of the wonderful intimacy between the pair.
Yet, in the presence of company, Wilkes would allow no
topic of conversation which could possibly offend his
daughter’s modesty.^ In spite of her tolerance for the
doubles ententes of her father, Polly was a most decorous
young lady, against whose fair fame the voice of scandal
has never whispered an evil word.
Occasionally a lightly-dropt remark showed that he
hoped she would marry. “The greatest blessing which
Heaven can bestow on any man,” he told her, “ is a daughter
like you— unless, indeed, it be the favoured mortal who can
call you his by a still closer connexion, and be perpetuated
by another resemblance of yourself and him, which could
complete my happiness as a father.” * Apparently he had
no notion that she was plain. “ The little Grace of Prince’s
Court,” he calls her in one of his letters ; in another he
speaks lovingly of her “ pretty face.” No one else, how-
ever, shared his admiration, and Polly Wilkes, great heiress
though she was, could not find a lover.
Among his former acquaintances John Churchill and ^
the Rev. Dr. Wilson still remained the most esteemed.
The former cdhtinued to be his medical adviser, but he
saw little of the latter except on his visits to Bath, where
the poor dotard lived in platonic friendship with Catherine
Macaulay, “ the female historian,” until her second marriage
with the brother of a quack doctor terminated their inti-
macy.* One of his chief cronies during this period was
Lord Imham, the reprobate father of Colonel Luttrell, an
muusing old rascal, perhaps the most dissolute peer of his
In Chase Price, M.P. for the county of Radnorshire,
‘ Biographies of Withes and Cobbett, Rev. J. S. Watson, pp. 111-12 ;
Baropean Magasine, xxxiii. 229.
* Letters of Withes to His Danghter, ii. 89.
‘ Historic Houses of Bath, R. E. Peach, ist series, p. 117 ; Letters of
<^ilkes to His Daughter, ii. 62, 76, 84, 93. i> 5 . 135, 143, 165.
Wilkes's Diary i Add. MSS. 30,866, passim ; Life of Withes, J. Almoa,
* 45 .
X
322 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i;;6-»3
he found another kindred spirit, almost equally famous as
a humorist, and an even greater admirer of feminine
charms.i With Lord Abingdon, a fellow-traveller in Italy,
and Lord Kelly, whom he had known while an exile in
Paris, he was on terms of the closest intimacy,* and dis-
tinguished fellow-members of the Beefsteak Club, such as
the Duke of Norfolk and the Earls of Inchiquin and Effing-
ham, were amongst his most familiar friends. Perhaps,
however, his master of revels was a wealthy dub-man,
named Miles Peter Andrews, who invited him to many a
cosy little dinner-party, along with Captain Ayscough and
Edward Topham, on which occasions Miss Nancy Brown,
the pretty actress, who was the host’s sultana, and some
other gay young ladies, whose names figured in “ Harris’s
List,” were always present to amuse the company.* Some-
times acquaintances from Paris like Suard, Lauraguais,
the Neckers, or Beaumarchais, came over to London,
receiving always the warmest welcome at Prince’s Court.*
Wilkes was famous for his hospitality.
The insatiable appetite for conviviality remained un-
abated, and* his social activities were not in the least re-
tarded by his duties as a dty alderman and a member of
Parliament. Except on the rare occasions when he wa?
unwell he dined with friends or entertained guests in bis
own house almost every day. Apparently a movable feast,
the time of dinner fluctuated indiscriminately between tie
hours of two and six in the afternoon, his own inclination
being to postpone the meal, since he disliked late su|^i©®*
» Records of My Life, J. Taylor, ii. aoy; Memoirs of Tate 0 ^^^;
ii. 176, iii. 163, 165, 169-72 ; The Royal Register, W, Combe, vii. 28^*
Sketches and Characters, P. Thicknesse, p. 93 : of the Ltde
Lyttelton, p. 123 ; Memoirs of Lord Rockingham, ii. 236.
• Life of WUkes, J. Almon, passim; Wilkes's Diary, passim:
de VAbbi Morellet, p. 175 n.
• Town and Country Magasine, viii. 9, xviii. 9; Bec«ds tf My >0/ ,
J* Taylor, U. 289-98.
• Wilkes's Diary.
® Letters of Wilkes to His Daughter, ii. 26, 40, 50, 123, 149 *
I77^“^3l
SOCIAL AFFAIRS
323
Although a great epicure, he was content with a small
menu, and notwithstanding his love of good fellowship he
drank most sparingly of wine.^ Walking was the exercise
upon which he relied most to keep himself in health, but
he was often on horseback, sometimes even hunting, and,
in spite of his age, he would bathe in the sea.* To please
his daughter he appeared occasionally at the Ranelagh mas-
querades, but though on very familiar terms with David
Garrick, he was not a great patron of the play-house. He was
always most happy in those places where he was able to talk.
Amongst the old friends with whom he dined frequently
was J ames Boswell of Auchinleck, who never failed to visit
Prince’s Court whenever he came to London. No one
enjoyed the society of Wilkes more heartily than the
humorous little Scotsman, and no one was more entertained
by badinage at the expense of his fellow-countrymen. At
every opportunity Wilkes made him the butt of his wit,
knowing that the good-natured fellow would never resent
the liberty. Once in the Old Bailey at a judge’s dinner
Boswell complained that his handkerchief had been stolen
as he came out of the Session House. “ Never mind him,
my lord,” ejacxflated Wilkes, “ it is the ostentation of a
Scotsman to let the world know he has a handkerchief.”*
Almost as rude was a famous retort in reference to the
scenery of Scotland. “ You must acknowledge, my friend
Wilkes,” observed Boswell one day, “ that the approach to
Edinburgh from the London road presents a very picturesque
and interesing picture.” “ Why, so perhaps it may,” re-
turned Wilkes, “ but when I was there the wind was in
"'y face, and it brought such a confounded stink that I
Was obliged to keep my handkerchief to my nose the whole
the way and could see nothing of the prospect.”* In
* Letters of WilAss io His Daughter, i. 140, ii. 217 ; Literary Anecdotes,
i- Nichols, ix. 477 M, t.
I Letters of Wilkes to His Daughter, ii. 7, 10, 18, 33, 36.
Morning Post, Feb. 13, 1786 ; European Magaune, wcxiii. 226.
Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, ii. 7.
3*4 life of JOHN WILKES [1776
reference to the lack of trees in Scotland, he once observed:
“There Judas might have survived his desperate inten-
tion." * Probably the reason that Boswell was one of the
few North Britons who could tolerate the anti-Scotticisms
of his friend is explained by the fact that he knew that
Wilkes had a great regard for him.
It had long been a matter of regret to the genial little
barrister that Wilkes and Dr. Johnson, the two persons to
whom he was most attached, were bitterly opposed to one
another. Years ago, when writing to the exiled patriot
from Venice, he had expressed a hope that Wilkes might
be taught “ the road to rational virtue and noble felicity ’’
by the great lexicographer.* With the close of the trium-
phant mayoralty, when Wilkes bore a royal testimonial as
a well-bred alderman, and all parties were agreed that the
office had never been filled more worthily, Boswell began to
think that it might be possible to arrange an interview
between his two eminent friends. An invitation from Dilly,
the bookseller, to meet Wilkes at dinner seemed to provide
the long-desired opportunity, and the Scotsman suggested
at once that Dr. Johnson should be asked too.
“ What, with Mr. Wilkes ? " cried Diliy, aghast at the
proposal. “ Not for the world. Dr. Johnson would never
forgive me."
“Come," replied Boswell, “if you’ll let me negotiate
for you I will be answerable that all shall go well.” •
Thus assured, Mr. Dilly agreed to send the second
invitation.
It was a tremendous task that Boswell had undertaken
so lightly, for Wilkes and Johnson were as repugnant to
one another as the cross and the crescent. Ever since the'
days of The North Briton, in which the lexicograjAer
held up to ridicule as a pensioner and a hireling, the two
^ Th§ Jetningham Papers, i, 285.
* Add. MS. 30,877, f. 47.
* BOSW0WS Lif§ of Johnson^ G. Birkbeck Hill, ill. 65*
,;761 social affairs 325
antagonists had bmi engaged in continuous strife. ^
Invariably tolerant and forgiving to his bitterest foe, Wilkes
was incapable of cherishing any deep animosity, but in
the eyes of the loyal and pious Dr. Johnson the merry
demagogue was the most dangerous and wicked marplot
in the world. Soon after the affair of the general warraft
the great had called Wilkes “ an abusive scoundrel,”
adding that “ instead of applying to my Lord Chief Justice
to punish him I would send half a dozen footmen and have
him well ducked.”* In his celebrated pamphlet called
The False Alarm he was even more defamatory. “ Lam-
poon itself," he declared, “ would disdain to speak ill of
him of whom no man speaks well.” • In the course of the
essay he referred to the patriot as a “ varlet,” “ a retailer
of sedition and obscenity,” and “ a criminal from gaol.” *
Whenever he mentioned the man’s name there was an
explosion of wrathful scorn. “ Sir,” he once told Boswell,
“ had Wilkes’s mob prevailed against the Government this
nation had died of phthiriasis.” ® After Townsend had been
elected Lord Mayor he remarked that it was extraordinary
that “ all the force of Government was required to prevent
Wilkes from bfeing chosen chief magistrate of London,
though the liverymen knew he would rob their shops and
debauch their daughters.”* During Wilkes’s mayoralty
he had enunciated the famous aphorism which has been
more often misapplied than any other in the English
language : “ Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.” ’
Wilkes, on his side, had dealt the Tory champion some
equally vigorous, if less Vicious, blows. In A Letter to
Samuel Johnson, LL.D., published in answer to The False
* Tht North Briton, i. 99, 100, loi, I 03 .
* BoswslVs Life of Johnson^ G. B. Hill, i. 394.
® the False Alarm, p. 6.
* The False Alarm, pp. 29, 35, 51.
* Boswell's Life of Johnson, G. B. Hill, iii. 183 n.
* BosweWs Life of Johnson, G. B. Hill, v. 339*
* Boswell's Life of Johnson, ii. 348.
32 <S LIFE OF |OHI^ WILKES
Alarm, he had designated his opponent as a “ spitter forth
... of servility and bombast,” mimicking with playful
humour his robust and sonorous style. Describing the
Johnsonian pamphlet as “ the unwieldy exhibition of the
gambols of a Colossus,” he reminded “the sage ” again that
he was a pensioner, and referred sarcastically to his former
“ poor but honest state.” ^ Nevertheless, in spite of their
antagonism in politics and ethics, Boswell was aware that
the two were by no means temperamentally unsympathetic,
both being endowed with a grace of humour and a shrewd
common-sense that could not fail to transport their minds
across the gulf that divided them.
The Scotsman conducted his “ negociations ” in a manner
worthy of the most skilful of diplomats. He knew that
if he put the point-blank question ; “ Sir, will you dine in
company with Jack Wilkes ? ” the old lexicographer would
have down into a passion and would probably have answered ;
“ Dine with Jack Wilkes, sir I I'd as soon dine with Jack
Ketch.” So he had recourse to subterfuge, confident that
he would gain his point owing to “ the spirit of contradic-
tion ” which* sometimes actuated his friend, and on the first
opportunity when they were alone together he mentioned
casually the bookseller’s invitation.
“Mr. Dilly, sir, sends his respectful compliments to
you,*” he began craftily, “ and would be happy if you wouM
do him the honour to dine with him on Wednesday next
along with me, as I must soon go to Scotland.”
Johnson. “ Sir, I am much obliged to Mr. Dilly. I wiB
wait upon him.”
Boswell. “Provided, sir, I suppose, that the company
which he is to have is agreeable to you ? ”
Johnson. “ What do you mean, sir ? What do you
take me for ? Do you think I am so ignorant of the worid
as to imagine that I am to prescribe to a gentleman what
company he is to have at his table ? ”
^'A utter to Samuel Johnson, Tp. 33 ; Gentleman’s MagaMin${tjJoli, 9^1^
.776] SOCIAL AFFAIRS 327
Boswell. “ I beg your pardon, sir, for wishing to prevent
you from meeting people whom you might not like. Perhaps
he may have some of what he calls his patriotic friends with
him.”
Johnson. “ Well, sir, and what then ? What care I for
his patriotic friends ? Poh ! ”
Boswell. “I should not be surprised to find Tack Wilkes
there.”
Johnson, “And if Jack Wilkes should be there, what is
that to me, sir ? My dear friend, let us have no more of
this. I am sorry to be angry with you ; but really it is
treating me strangely to talk to me as if 1 could not meet
any company whatsoever occasionally.”
Boswell. “ Pray forgive me, sir, I meant well. But you
shall meet whoever comes, for me.” *
Thus in the first act of the comedy Boswell had been as
triumphant as Punchinello in Italian farce, but as a retri-
bution, perhaps, for his duplicity towards his mentor, the
laugh turned sadly against him in the next scene. For at the
appointed hour on Wednesday, the 15th of May, 1776, when
he waited on Dr. Johnson to accompany him \o the dinner-
party he found him “buffetting his books ” in the study,
having forgotten all about the engagement with Mr. Dilly.
Moreover, he had promised to dine at home with Mrs.
Williams, the blind dependent who lived in his house, and
being too kind-hearted to disappoint the poor creature he
refused to alter his plans unless she would consent. It
seemed for the moment that the encounter with Jack Wilkes
would not take place after aU. The volatile Scotsman, how-
ever, was not easily baffled. Goii^ to the old lady’s room,
he explained his dilemma, using all his power of cajolery to
induce her to give up her claim to the great man’s company.
It was a difficult task, but at length, after listening to a
lull explanation, Mrs. Willisuns agreed that Dr. Johnson
' BoswM's Lift of Johnson, G. B. Hill, iii. 66 ; Boswell" s Lift of Johnson,
Fitagerald-, ii. 143.
328 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
ought to go. So, while “ the sage ’’ was putting on a dean
shirt, acarris^e was called, and the two friends were soon
driving down the Strand to the house of their host in the
Poultry. “ When I had him fairly seated in a hackney-
coach with me,’’ Boswell confesses in his great biography,
“ I exulted as much as a fortune-hunter who has got an
heiress into a post-chaise with him to set out for Gretna
Green.” ^ Evidently he had no misgivings about the con-
sequences of his plot, believing that the tact and humour
of the member for Middlesex could not fail to charm his old
friend.
Wilkes undoubtedly was not in the least perturbed
but perhaps a little elated at the prospect of meeting
Dr. Johnson. It was a foible with him, just as it was with
Boswell, to be acquainted with every man of mark, and he
took a pride in turning his enemies into friends. He had no
intention of flaunting the blue flag in the face of the old
Tory, although the fear of being tossed and gored would
not have deterred him. So he donned his best clothes in
hig^ spirits and went off to Mr. Dilly’s, resplendent in gold
lace and bright colours.
All the company were assembled wheft Dr. Johnson
rolled into the room vrith Boswell strutting beside him.
Most of the guests were strangers to the old man, and
Wilkes, even more alert than usual, must have been amused
to hm him ask the host to tell him their names.
“ Who is that gentleman, sir ? ” was the first whispered
question.
“ Mr. Arthur Lee, sir,” replied Dilly, indicating the wcii'
known American revolutionary.
“ Too, too, too,” muttered Johnson in great displeasure
under his breath, “ and who is the gentleman in lace ? ” -
“ Mr. Wilkes, sir I ” ■
The patriot had the opportunity of seeing the expression
of consternation upon the face of the stubborn old Tory»
^ Boswell* ^ Life of Johnson, G. B. Hill, iii. 67^81
1776] SOCIAL AFFAIRS 329
as he took up a book and turned away in disgust to the
window-seat, restraining his resentment with difficulty.
But having declared that he could “meet any company
whatsoever occasionally,” he did not choose to show that
the boast was an empty one.*
When dinner was at last announced Wilkes followed
close upon Johnson’s heels into the dining-room, and seating
himself in the next chair began to chat agreeably. It was
a strange study in contrast, the volatile epicurean in
silk attire, and the unwieldy herculean stoic in his sombre
clothes, the one prattling with merry insouciance, determined
to please ; the other with a surly scowl on his rugged face,
deep in a sulk. It was not long before the quick tact of
Wilkes had divined a way to ingratiate himself with his
old enemy. In front of him stood a fine joint of veal, and
remembering, no doubt, that J ohnson was a famous gourmet,
he began to help him with marked attention.
“ Pray give me leave, sir. It is better here,” he said, as
he carved. “ A little of the brown— some fat, sir— a little
of the stuffing— some gravy.” And when the plate was *
filled j “Let me have the pleasure of giving you some
butter,” he pelsisted. “ Allow me to recommend a squeeze
of this orange— or the lemon, perhaps, may have more
zest.”
And while exerting himself to anticipate the old gentle-
man’s wants Wilkes had the satisfaction of perceiving that
he was not labouring in vain. The huge swaying form bent
towards him, and the massive head bowed low.
“Sir, sir, I am much obliged to you, sir,” repeated
Johnson, and the patriot saw that the frown had begun to
fade from the old man’s brow, while the dim eyes no longer
Wore the look of anger. In a little while they were chatting
amicably.*
The talk turned upon the stage, Garrick’s name bdng
^ Bosw^fs Life of Johnson^ G. B. Hill, iii. 68.
* Boswell* $ Life of Johnson^ iii. 69^
330 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.776
moitioned, a dangaroas subject in such company, since
Johnson would never “allow anyone to attack Garrick
but himself.” Wilkes’s first remark was complimentary,
likening the wit of the great actor to Lord Chesterfield’s,
but when the doctor had told an anecdote about Foote and
his small-beer, the patriot, remembering perhaps the
occasion when the hospitality of the villa at Hampton had
been denied to him, spoke of Garrick’s avarice.
“ He would have made the small-beer still smaller,” he
observed. “ He is now leaving the stage, but he will play
Scrub all his life.” ^
Johnson, however, who was now leading the conversation
in perfect good humour, did not take offence, protesting
merely that the actor was much more generous than the
public imagined. The old man's interest was aroused and
he was curious to hear how the celebrated jester would
acquit himself.
A few moments later Wilkes seized an opportunity of
poking fun at the Scotch, well aware that in this respect he
was sure of his neighbour’s sympathy.
“Among »J1 the bold flights of Shakespeare’s ima^-
nation,” he exclaimed, “the boldest was making Bimam
Wood march to Dunsinane ; creating a wood where there
never was a shrub ; a wood in Scotland ! Ha ! ha I ha 1 ” ’
And in ridicule of the clannish slavery of the Highlands
he declared that while on a visit to Inveraray it was
apparent that he would be massacred by the tenanfe if
he displeased their chief, for he knew that the story wotdd
amuse Dr. Johnson, who had recently been the guest of
the Duke of Argyll and his beautiful duchess in their north-
country home. Having found a bond of unitni with his
former UU noire in their antipathy to Gaelic ihing$> the
old man began to be captivated by the charm <rf
> Boswavs Life of Johnson, G. B. Hill, iu. 70; cf. Cormpontitmtff
Dauid Garrickf i. 426-7 ; Add. MS. 30,877» f. 60*
* ^osweU*s Life of Johmon^ Q. B. Hill, iii. 73.
177^] SOCIAL AFFAIRS 331
patriot. Soon they were gratifying another taste in common,
discussing a contested passage in the Ars Poetica.
“We have no dty poet now,” said Wilkes; “that is
an office which has gone into disuse. The last was Klkar iah
Settle. There is something in names which one cannot help
feeling. Now Elkanah Settle sounds so queer; who can
expect much from that name ? We should have no hesita-
tion to give it for John Dryden in preference to Elkanah
Settle from the names only, without knowing their different
merits.”
“I suppose, sir,” sneered Johnson, sure that the
ex-Lord Mayor despised the city folk as much as he,
“Settle did as well for Alderman in his time as John
Home could do now ! ” *
The mention of Home suggested fresh jokes against
North Britain; and some one having remarked at the
moment that Scottish colonists were cultivating a barren
part of America, Wilkes and Johnson began to vie with
one another in good-humoured chaff at Boswell’s expense.
“Why, sir, all barrenness is comparative,” laughed^
Johnson. “The Scotch would not knpw it to be
barren.”
“Come, come, he is flattering the English,” protested
Boswell. “ You have been in Scotland, sir, and say if you
did not see meat and drink enough there ? ”
“Why, yes, sir,” retorted Johnson, “meat and drink
enough to give the inhabitants sufficient strength to run
away from homci”
“ That, I should think,” interposed Wilkes, “ may be
safely sworn of all the Scotch nation.”
“You must know, sir," continued Johnson, turning
confidentially to Wilkes, “ I lately took my friend Boswdl
and showed him genuine civilised life in an English pn>-
vincial town. I turned him loose at Lichfield, my native
city, that he might see for once real civility: for you
1 BmwUfi Life of Johnson^ iii* 76-
332 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1776
know he lives among savages in Scotland and among rakes
in London.”
“ Except when he is with grave, sober, decent people,”
replied Wilkes, “ like you and me.” ^
The old Tory began to talk of Mrs. Macaulay, “the
female historian,” whose vagaries were becoming more
ridiculous every day.
“ One day when I was at her house I put on a \ery
grave countenance and said to her: ‘Madam, I am now
become a convert to your way of thinking. I am convinced
that all mankind are upon an equal footing ; and to give
you an unquestionable proof. Madam, that I am in earnest,
here is a very sensible, civil, well-bdiaved fellow-citizen,
your footman ; I desire that he may be allowed to sit
down and dine with us.’ I thus, sir, showed her the
absurdity of the levelling doctrine. She has never liked
me since.”*
And Wilkes, who realised that the foolish woman was
ruining the happiness of his old friend Dr. Wilson, was
delighted with the anecdote. He was now far less attached
to his old axiom that “ the voice of the people is the voice of
God.”
So friendly had Johnson become towards him that he
even ventured upon the verge of politics, talking “ with aU
imaginable freedom of the ridiculous title ” given to the
Attoniey General of Diabolus Regis.
“ I have reason to know something of that officer,” he
explained demurely, “ for I was prosecuted for a libel.”
“ Poor old England is lost 1 ” he cried later, in allusion
to the recent disaster in America, but the stubborn Tory,
who rarely missed the opportunity of chastising a pofitical
opponent, was pleased to be indulgent towards his new
acquaintance.
“Sir,” remarked Johnson, changing the eonvelsati<»
** Boswell* s Life of Johnson^ G. B. Hill, iii. 77.
• Boswell* s Life of Johnson^ G. B. Hill, i. 447, iii* 77-®-
1776] SOCIAL AFFAIRS 333
with a jest, “ it is not so much to be lamented that Old
England is lost as that the Scots have found it.”
“Had Lord Bute governed Scotland only,” answered
Wilkes, “ I should not have taken the trouble to write his
eulogy, and dedicate Mortimer to him.” *
vi^en dinner was over Wilkes still continued to pay
court to “ the great Cham,” holding a candle “ to show a
fine print of a beautiful female figure which hung in the
room, and pointed out the elegant contour of the bosom
with the finger of an arch connoisseur.” Afterwards, in a
conversation with Boswell, he “ waggishly insisted that all
the time Johnson showed visible signs of a fervent admira-
tion of the corresponding charms of a fair Quaker.” It was
a most successful party in every respect, and on his return
home the doctor informed Mrs. Williams that he had been
greatly pleased with Wilkes’s company.*
In a letter to his friend Mrs. Thrale on the next day the
old man once more referred with evident gratification to
the meeting at Dilly’s. “For my part,” he wrote, “I
begin to settle and keep company with grave aldermen.^
I dined yesterday in the Poultry with Mr,. Aid. Wilkes,
Mr. Aid. Lee? and Counsellor Lee, his brother. There you
sat all the while, so sober . . . and . . . you think by
chance on Johnson, what is he doing ? What should he be
doing ? He is breaking jokes with Jack Wilkes upon the
Scots. Such, Madam, are the vicissitudes of things.” * In
Wilkes’s diary, unhappily, there is merely the usual laconic
entry : “ Dined at Mr. Dilly’s in the Poultry with Messrs.
Edward and Charles Dilly, Dr. Johnson, Mr. Boswell,
Arthur Lee, Miller of Bath Easton, Dr. Lettsom, &c.” *
Still, it is evident that the patriot had not conceived
any great veneration for the lexicographer. In S|Mte of
1 Boswell* $ Life of Johnson^ G, B. Hill, iii. 78.
• Boswell* s Life of Johnson, G, B. Hill, iii. 78-9.
• Letters of Samuel Johnson, G, B, Hill, i« 397 J Letters to and from
Johnson, H. L, Piotti, i, 325,
• Add. MS. 30.86^.
334 life of JOHN WILKES [i;;;-*,
their merry meeting, his political animosity blazed forth
again before the end of twelve months. During his speech
on the king’s debts in the following spring, he wmt out of
his way to make a fresh attack upon his old antagonist.
‘“The two famous doctors, Shebbeare and Jdinson,” he
thundered, “ are . . . the state hirelings called pensioneis.
The piety of our Sovereign to the memory of his grandfather
.... should surely, sir, have prevented the names of these
two doctors from disgracing the civil list, which both of
them repeatedly and publicly declared the King’s family
had no right to. . , . These two doctors have in their
writings treated the late King and King William with the
utmost virulence and scurrility, and they are known as the
pensioned advocates of despotism.” ^
Oddly enough, Johnson was never aware of this
malediction, or if it came to his knowledge he bore it
with unwonted hxunility. Five months later he spoke of
Wilkes in terms of praise. “ Did we not hear so much of
Jack Wilkes,” he observed, “ we should think more highly
of his conversation. Jack has great variety of talk, Jack
is a scholar. Jack has the manners of a gentleman. But
after hearing his name sounded from pole to pole as the
phoenix of convivial felicity we are disappointed in his
company. He has always been at me ; but I would do
J ack a l^dness rather than not. ‘The contest is now over.” *
In spate of the late fulmination, Wilkes, too, had no feehngs
of animosity against “ the state pensioner.” A few momths
latar, when Boswell, who was fond of pnaising the one in
the presence of the other, repeated a Johnsonian utterance
on the subject of liberty, he exclaimed with good-humoni«d
tolerance, “ What I does talk of Uberty ? Liherty is as
ridiculous in his mouth as religion in mine.” *
Five years elapsed before the two met again. Utterly
> Speeches of Mr. Wilkes, pp. 133-4 : ParUamesttasy Histosy, ***•
• Boswell's Life of Johnson, G. B. Hfll, iii. 183 ; Boswelft LifeofJ^^
son, P. Fitzgerald, ii. 226.
* Boswell’s Life of Johnson, G. B, Hill, iii. 224.
1780 SOCIAL AFFAIRS 335
dissimilar in tastes and opinions, there was nothing to
make them intimate friends. Once more, on the 8th of
May, 1781, they dined together with Dilly in the Poultry,
the patriot being now Chamberlain of London, and a far
less active politician than formerly. Naturally, since it
was a subject upon which both could expatiate without
danger of altercation, they were soon engaged in chaffing
their Scottish friend.
“I have been thinking. Dr. Johnson,” began Wilkes
mischievously, “that there should be a bill brought into
Parliament that the controverted elections for Scotland
should be tried in that country at their own Abbey of
Holyrood House and not here; for the consequence of
trying them here is that we have an inundation of Scotch-
men, who come up and never go back again. Now, here is
Boswell, who is come up upon the election for his own
county, which wiD not last a fortnight.”
“Nay, sir,” replied Johnson, “I see no reason why
they should be tried at all ; for you know one Scotchman
is as good as another."
“ Pray, Boswell,” inquired Wilkes, “ how much may be
got in a year by an advocate at the Scotch bar ? ”
“ I believe two thousand pounds,” answered the barrister.
“ How can it be possible,” cried Wilkes, “ to spend that
money in Scotland ? ”
“Why, sir, the money may be spent in England,”
returned Johnson, “ but there is a harder question. If one
man in Scotland gets possession of two ffiousand pounds,
what remains for all the rest of the nation ? ”
“ You know, in the last war,” continued Wilkes, “ the
immense booty which Thurot carried off by the complete
plunder of seven Scottish isles ; be re-embarked with three
and sixpence.” ^
In the course of conversation the patriot uttered two
characteristic criticisms. Quotation he censured as pedantry,
* BosweWt Lift of Joknsom, G. B. Hill, iv. loi.
336 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.,8.
his own style, both colloquial and literary, being too swift
and transparent to admit of interpolation.
“No, sir, it is a good thing," objected Johnson; “there
is a community of mind in it. Classical quotation is the
parole of literary men all over the world.”
“ Upon the continent they quote the Vulgate Bible,"
answered Wilkes, tactfully avoiding argument; “Shake-
speare is chiefly quoted here; and we quote also Pope,
Prior, Butler, Waller, and sometimes Cowley.”^
In reference to oratory his opinions were more reac-
tionary. Oratory, he declared, was “accompanied with
all the charm of poetical expression,” thereby revealing
one of the reasons of his own failure as a parliamentary
speaker.
“No, sir," replied Johnson, “oratory is the power of'
beating down your adversary's arguments and putting
better in their place,”
“ But this does not move the passions,” retorted Wilkes,
with the memory of his achievements as a tub-thumper no
doubt in his mind.
“ He must be a weak man who is so moved,” said
Johnson significantly. •
Even politics and religion were no longer excluded from
their talk. When Wilkes suggested that in case of necessity
the House of Commons might order the exportation of
specie to the colonies, the doctor did not hesitate to use the
obvious argumentum ad hominem.
“ Sure, sir,” he observed, “ you don’t think a resolution
of the House of Commons equal to the law of the land ? “
“ God forbid, sir,” replied Wilkes, remembering the vote
that made him an exile for five years.*
A little later the patriot remarked how strange it was
that an irreligious person like Topham Beauclerk should
have had a large collection of sermons in his library.
^ Boswell* $ Life of Johnson, G. B, Hill, iv, loa.
* Boswell’s Life of Johnson, iv. 104,
1781-83] SOCIAL AFFAIRS 337
“Why, sir,” said Johnson, “you are to consider that
sermons make a considerable branch of English literature ;
so that a library must be very imperfect if it has not a
numerous collection of sermons. . . . Besides, sir,” he
continued, looking at Mr. Wilkes with a placid but signi-
ficant smile as he spoke, “a man may collect sermons
with the intention of making himself better by them. . . .”1
And Wilkes, who delighted to brag of his impiety, must
have been gratified by the old man’s interest in his spiritual
welfare.
Apparently each was charmed by the society of the
other, and Johnson, at any rate, being incapable of acting
a part, must have been sincere. To the delight of Boswell,
the sage continued to sit in a favourite attitude, thrust far
back into his chair, with Wilkes at his elbow, their heads
close together, talking earnestly in a confidential whisper
long after the rest of the company had dispersed. Before
they separated, Wilkes asked for a present of The Lives of
the Poets, which Johnson told the bookseller to send with
his compliments, and in due course the gift arrived at
Prince’s Court. Soon afterwards the patriot called upon
the doctor to thank him for his kindness, when they had
another friendly interview.*
Two years later Boswell tried to arrange a fourth meeting,
Wilkes being anxious that the lexicographer should dine
with him at his home in St. James’s Park. Unfortunately
Johnson was engaged on the days proposed, and the barrister
had to hurry back to Scotland. Even had the guests been
available, it is doubtful whether the dinner would have
taken place, for Wilkes was attacked by a severe illness,
which lasted for more than three weeks.*
It is not to be regretted that Wilkes and Johnson met
so seldom. Familiarity must have led to a quarrel, for it
‘ Boswell’s Life of Johnson, iv. 105-7.
* Boswell's Life of Johnson, G. B. Hill, iv. 107.
’ Add. MSS. 30,877, ff, 95-7 : of S. Johnson, G. B. HiU, ii.
*95-6 ; Life of Wtikes, J. Almon, iv. 314, 3*1 : Wilkes's Diary.
y
338 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES f,;,,
was impossible that they could reconcile their differences
for any length of time. The doctor would not tolerate an
impious word ; the patriot revelled in facetious stories and
mild profanity. That Wilkes had no deep reverence for
Johnson is shown by his approval of a spiteful epitaph,
written by an egregious scribbler, named Soame Jenyns,
long after the great man’s death.* It was vanity, for the
most part, that led him to conquer the aversion of his old
foe. Johnson, on the other hand, seems to have found a
real pleasure in the society of the member for Middlesex,
and the marvellous metamorphosis in their relationship,
revealed in the history of their two meetings, is a very high
testimony to the charm and versatility of Wilkes.
^ Letters of Wilkes to his Daughtety iv. 28.
CHAPTER XIX
LADY FRIENDS
1773-1780
D uring the period of his greatest activity in
Parliament, Wilkes was enjoying one of the most
famous of his amours. The liaison with pretty
Mrs. Gardiner had been a brief one, and after
a period of vacillation, while he amused himself with the
Kitty Towlers and Lucy Ballards whom he met at the supper
parties of Miles Andrews, he selected a maitresse en Hire
who was clever enough to retain his favour for four years.
It was on the 24th of September 1773, that he saw her
first at a dinner in the old Swan Inn in Chelsea, given by
the witty voluptuary Chase Price, one of her innumerable
patrons.i The.name of the siren was Marianne Genevieve
de Charpillon, a Parisian of Swiss origin, who, although apt
to underrate her age after the manner of her kind, had
already passed her thirtieth birthday.® Time had been
lenient to her charms in spite of her riotous past, and
Wilkes, ever an admirer of the ladies of France, was be-
witched by her blandishments.
Mademoiselle Charpillon was a very handsome wom^.
With soft blue eyes and a wealth of chestnut hair, her beauty
belonged to the Gretchen type, the gift of her Helvetian
ancestry. Tall and shapely, with delicate hands and tiny
leet, there was grace and elasticity in all her movements.
An expression of sincerity rested upon her dainty features,
* Wilkes’s Diary. Vide Add. MSS. 30,866; cf. Add. MS. 30,880 A,
Letter of Feb. 7, 1774.
* Wilkes’s List of Addresses, Vide Add. MS. 30,892.
339
340 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.;;j
inviting the S3nnpathy of all with its naive, childlike inno-
cence. It was a sweet, alluring face, pink and white and
piquant, and the licentious Wilkes, who did not insist that
a mistress should be in the first bloom of youth, began
immediately to pay court to her.^
At this period she was living in Black and White Lands
Lane at Chelsea, with her grandmother, her mother, and an
aunt.* The history of the family had been a tempestuous
one, all three generations having been courtesans. The
old lady, under the name of Brunner, had attained some
notoriety in her youth as a second-rate meretrix in Berne,
where the mother of Marianne was bom, one of three
illegitimate daughters. Even less successful than their
parent, the girls never found any more eminent clients
than grooms and footmen, leading a hazardous existence
in low-class bagnios, until, luckily for themselves, the whole
family was banished from the country by the Swiss govern-
ment. Eventually, under an assumed name, they drifted
to Paris, where for a time they enjoyed considerable pros-
perity, being patronised by men of rank and position. Here,
about the year 1740, Rose Charpillon, the youngest of
the three girls, gave birth to Marianne, ami after a futile
attempt to prove that the baby was the daughter of the
Imperial Ambassador, the family was obliged to allow that
her. real father was a Jew bourgeois.® When scarcely
more than a child, her mother and grandmother, seeking
the best market for their goods, emigrated with her to
London.
While never reaching the first rank amongst “Covent
Garden Ladies,” Marianne Charpillon did not lack admirers.
* Mimoires de J. Casanova (Gamier), vi, 485 ; Mtnmres d$ /. C***"
nova (Rozez), vi. 7. For the proofs that identify the Charpillon of Wilke*
with the Charpillon of Casanova, see Author’s note in N(des and QtmVSi
nth series, iv. 382, 461 ; v. 484 ; Rems, of H. Angelo (r904), i. 4 ^*-
* Wilkes’s List of Addresses. Vide Add. MS. 30,892.
* Mimoires de Casanova (Gamier), vi. 513 ; information supjdted by »•
Ch. Samaran, of the Archives Nation<Aes in Paris. Cf. jaegnes Casanoi'*'
Ch. Samaran, pp. 270-82.
1773 ]
LADY FRIENDS
341
Probably, but for the presence of squalid relatives, she
might have become a queen of the demi-monde. Yet, in
spite of a mediocre career, her posthumous fame has ex-
ceeded that of almost any of her kind. It was to a curious
incident that she owes this celebrity. In January 1764,
while living with her unsavoury kinsfolk in Denmark Street,
St. Giles’s,' she made the acquaintance of an Italian
adventurer, named Giacomo Casanova, who had come to
England to seek his fortune. A black and virile creature,
fierce as the sun of his native land, he was unused to place
any curb upon his passions, and as soon as his restless eyes
beheld the radiant face of Marianne CharpiUon he pursued
her like a satyr. The girl’s dignity was offended, for she
was not without strength of character, and had an exalted
opinion of her own worth. Deeply incensed by the un-
mannerly wooing of the stranger, she resolved to teach him
a bitter lesson. Time after time she accepted his money
and arranged a rendezvous, but when the meeting took
place she refused to gratify his desires.
Invariably successful in his amours, Casanova was
provoked beyond endurance by this obduracy. Racked
by the torments of Tantalus, he lost all self-control and
menaced the scornful beauty with his cane. Driven mto
the street in night attire to avoid corporal punishment,
the indignant Marianne took a swift revenge. Lodging
a complaint at Bow Street, she procured the arrest of her
persecutor on the ground that he had threatened her with
violence. Although the Italian had little difficulty in
persuading Sir John Fielding to grant his release, the
adventure seems to have rankled in his mind more than any
misfortune in his stormy career. For he had been deeply
in love with the fair CharpiUon, and was sorely hurt because
she treated him with disdain. 'Thirty-five years later,
when the old libertine was composing his wonderful
memoirs, the blue eyes of the beautiful girl stUl haunted
' Holborn Rate Books for 1764.
342 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
him, and he told the story of his humiliation m a
spirit of fierce resentment. Among all the men and women
depicted in these lurid pages, La Charpillon remains the
most vivid and memorable — a bright, implacable coquette
With a child’s face and a heart of steel. As long as the
memoirs of Casanova are read she will not be forgotten.^
Bound by a strong family tie, which is an excellent trait
in her character, Marianne behaved with admirable gene-
rosity towards her people, willing to share with them at all
times. Her mother, more than forty years of age when Casa-
nova came to England, was a greater burden even than the
old grandmother, becoming soon a chronic invalid, but her
Aunt Julie succeeded in earning a small income by the sale
of a quack medicine, which she called “ le baume de vie,”
alleging that it was the true elixir of life.*® Occasionally
Marianne captivated a rich gallant, like Thomas Panton of
turf fame and brother of the Duchess of Ancaster, who
for her sake seems to have deserted such a powerful en-
chantress as “ the luscious ” Mrs. Gamier.® For the most
part, however, the Charpillon family were in an impecunious
state, and the capture of the famous demagogue was a
lucky event.® »
Always lavish in his dealings with a woman, Wilkes
spared no expense to win the approval of the capricious
courtesan. Soon after their first meeting, it was arranged
that the whole family should remove to a more commodious
house in Great Titchfleld Street, where they took up their
* Mtmoires de Casanova (Gamier), vi. chaps. 14, 15, and 16 ; Mitnoktt
de Casanova (Rozez), vi. chaps, r and 2. Although Casanova was in
England during the latter half of the year 1763, when the whole nation
was talking of Wilkes, he does not mention the patriot's name. In
years it is not improbable that he leamt of the connection between VTiUM®
and Mile. Charpillon. _
* Mimoires de Casanova (Gamier), vi. 490, 493, 499; Add. M®'
30,880 A, ff. 94, 98, 103 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Dai^hler, il.,sni
142, 169 : Life of WUhes, J. Almon, iv. 279.
* Add. MS. 30,880 A, f. 131 ; cf. Town and Country Mageuini, I. S 7 -
* Notes and Queries, iith series, ii. 386 ; iii. 24a: v. 484.
1773] LADY FRIENDS 343
abode on the ist of November, when, since it was Marianne’s
birthday, a festive little dinner party was given by the
amorous alderman in honour of his inamorata.* In addi-
tion to monetary contributions he sent periodical gifts of
food and wine, also, when his finances permitted, rich
presents of gowns and millinery.** Ever since his matri-
monial fiasco he had hoped to meet a woman who might
take the place of a wife, and at last he seemed to have
found his affinity.
For more than four years Mariaime managed to retain
his fealty. With the passing of youth she had learnt the
need of tact, while repeated misfortunes showed her the
folly of being too exacting. Even had her temperament
been unchanged since the days when she had tormented
Casanova, she realised full well that in J ohn Wilkes she was
dealing with a stronger and cleverer man. Judging his
disposition with charming art, her attitude towards him
was all gentleness and humility, and the stubborn egotist,
enchanted by her dainty foreign accent and coaxing
smiles, indulged her like a spoilt child, unaware that she
ruled him in all things. Whenever he tried to scold, she*
would lay hes hand upon his lips, begging hfm not to make
“ the mouth of an elephant.” ®
If a week should pass without a visit from her paramour,
she wrote him a letter in her quaint orthography, chiding
him for his negligence or reproaching him for making her
unhappy, knowing that he was vastly amused by these
u^ve, illiterate scrawls. Sometimes she sought to awaken
his ardour by playful suggestiveness. “C’est avec im-
patience que j’aten le mois de Novembre,” she informed
him on the ist of August, “ puisque cela me fait espdrdr
que vous ne serde pas si paraisseur que dans le grmde
* Wilkes's Diary of Nov. i, 1773 : Wilkes’s List of Addresses. Vide
Add. MS. 30,892 ; Marylebone Rate Books.
* Add. MS. 30,880 A., passim ; Morning Post, July 4, 1777.
* Add. MS. 30,880 A, fi. 46, 77.
344 life of JOHN WILKES ims-yj
chaleur.” In like manner, when asking for a loan, she knew
how to charm away his displeasure. “ Si par hasar,” she
insinuated, “vous est tourment^e par loisivet6e se soir,
ven^e pour vous disipee avec moy.”^
In almost every letter that she wrote there is evidence
of the skill with which she kept him in control. For Wilkes
was always a restive lover, and had to be driven with silken
reins. By pretending implicit obedience, she managed to
get her own way in most things. Knowing his appetite
for flattery, she professed the most profound admiration
for his character, and never failed to repeat every little
incident that would tickle his vanity. “ J ’ai 6t4 hyar au
bal maskte,” she told him after one of their tiffs, “ le plaisir
seul que j’ai eut vous en 6tiee I’auteur, ce qu’il vous paroi-
tera une 6nigme, mais le raison est toute claire, il y avait
un Mr. que avoit ecri sur son chapo Wilkes and liberta. II a
tr^s bien jou6e ce rolle il a cont6e a la campagni que les
drois de ce pay 6tois perdu si vous n’^ti6e pas 61ue, et vous
6ti6e san tache et une infinitee dautre circumstance ....
vous pouv^e facilemen pansee, que toute ses bonne raison
non pas I’ess^e que de me flat^e I’oreillie, qui enten ce qui
vous regard pkr les autre.”® Probably Wilkes imagined
that he had accomplished a successful taming of the shrew,
whereas in reality La Charpillon was his mistress in every
sense of the word.
It was part of her policy to feign a great interest in the
daughter of her protector, “ une demoiselle si accompli
et si perfectioim^e.” Miss Polly also, ignorant of nothing
that concerned her father, was quite aware of Marianne s
existence, and Wilkes, most brazen of libertines, entrusted
her on one occasion with a commission for his mistress.*
Although he never allowed them to meet, he did not attempt
to prevent them from exchanging compliments. “Made-
• Add. MSS. 30,880 A, fi. 58, 62.
Add. MS. 30,880 A, f. 106.
Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, ii< 34.
,776-;7] LADY FRIENDS 345
moiselle Wilkes ma fait I’honneur ce matin de me faire
demendfe I’dtat de ma santde,” Mari ann e wrote to her
protector during the year of his mayoralty, “ je suis for
sensible a la politesse de My Lady Mayor.” *
Similar motives led her to make a pet of Jack Smith,
whose fondness for French people and French ways created
a bond of sympathy between them. With a strange lack of
discretion, Wilkes encouraged the intimacy, and during the
two years that his son remained in London he took him
frequently to dine at No. 30 Great Titchfield Street. Jack
was a droll, lovable boy, with a large share of hereditary
humour, but proved a sad disappointment to his father.
Being unable to adapt himself to English ways after his
long residence in Paris, he made no progress in his education,
except, thanks to the tuition of Angelo, in the matter of
horsemanship. At last, in the summer of 1776, weary of
his peccadilloes, for he proved a sad pickle, Wilkes sent him
over to Germany with the idea of allowing him to enter
the Hessian cavalry as soon as he had learnt the language.
It was stipulated, however, that he should not serve against
the American colonists.*
One Sunday evening, while Wilkes was taking supper at ‘
Great Titchfield Street, ten months after the departure of
Jack Smith, the first serious quarrel took place between
Marianne and himself. In a sudden pique the nature of
the gutter-child revealed itself, and she scolded him like
a street-walker. Since his affections were beginning to
wane, Wilkes was glad of an excuse to terminate the
liaison, for he was deep in debt, and Miss CharpiUon
was an expensive luxury. On the following morning
‘ Add. MSS. 30,880 A, fi. 24, 26, 35, 120 ; Letters of Wilkes to his
Daughter, ii. 34.
* Wilkes’s Diary, 1774-6 ; Vide Add. MSS. 30,666 ; Records of My
Dife, J. Taylor, i. in ; Rems, of H. Attgelo (1904)) *• 4*» 4* '> History of
isle of Wight, W. H. Davenport Adams, p. 203 ; Life of Wilkes, J . Almon,
w. 167, i68, 169, 248, 252, 275; V. 117-122; Letters of WMes to his
Daughter, ii. 23, 29, 45 ; Add. MSS. 30,872, fi. 6a, 116,
346 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
he sent a letter to bid her farewell, determined to see
her no more :
“ Mademoiselle, — Les demiferes paroles que vous m’avez
fait I’honneur de me dire 6toient, ‘Monsieur, vous mStes
devenu aussi odieux que ma Mere 1 ’ Vous savez, ce qui
est arriv6 dimanche au soir.
La plainte est pour le fat,
Le bruit est pour le sot,
L’honnete homme tromp6
S’^loigne et ne dit mot.
Adieu.” 1
Though he did not keep this stern resolve, his connection
with Marianne soon came to an end. After a suitable
apology she received his forgiveness, and they met occa-
sionally, while Wilkes sometimes sent her presents of wine
or flowers. But her power over him was gone. Financial
worries, an election for the Chamberlainship, and frequent
absence from London all in turn served to keep him from her
side. Before November they had drifted entirely apart.
For some weeks Mademoiselle Charpillon had been in-
capacitated with a scalded foot, and when able at last to
leave her couch she found that the fickle lover was beyond
her reach.* Under the circumstances her reign had been
of more than usual duration. It was her art, not mutual
S5rmpathy, that had bound them together, and it was
impossible that two masterful temperaments such as theirs
could blend for long.
In a little while Wilkes had found a younger and more
tranquil companion, Amelia Arnold by name, country-bred
and economical — a plain, homely creature, happy to wait
on him hand and foot, and obedient as a slave. Thwe
was no formal parting with Marianne, and he bore no rancour
against her, taking note of each new address for many years-
whenever she changed her abode, in case he mi^t widi to
‘ Add. MS. 30,880 A, f. loi ; c/. Wilkes’s Diary^ May ix, 1777 *
• Add. MSS. 30,880 A, fi. 102-1X2 ; c/. Wilkes’s Diary^
,778] LADY FRIENDS 347
renew their friendship. It was seldom, however, that he
had need to pick up the threads of the past. Each month,
almost, of his adventurous life led him upon a fresh trail.
Scarcely had he turned his back upon the piquant face of
Mademoiselle Charpillon than he was entangled in a fresh
amour, the most remarkable perhaps in which he had ever
engaged. Compared with this new intrigue, the affair with
Miss Arnold, which took place at the same time, was a
casual incident.
It was during a visit to Bath, where he spent the Christmas
holidays, that this incorrigible libertine fell in love once
more. The name of the lady was Maria Stafford, wife of
William Stafford, of The Holt, near Wokingham, and a
woman of position, whom he met at a dinner-party on the
loth of January, 1778, at the house of Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton
in Russell Street.* Cultured and clever, with much of the
blue-stocldng in her disposition, she was flattered by the
homage of the popular hero, and behaved to him with de-
lightful complaisance. Enchanted by her bright glance
and lively prattle, Wilkes began to entertain most tender
aspirations, his passion being inflamed by the knowledge
that she was, living apart from a faithless husband. In *
comparison with this serene and gracious gentlewoman,
the humble Amelia and the artful Marianne both seemed
vulgar and commonplace. All the evening he remained
by her side, making love to her with audacious persistency,
overjoyed to find that she was pleased to listen to all that
he had to tell her.
Four da3?s later business summoned him to town, but
before setting out he left a card at her house, which called
forth a grateful little note to say that she would be “ truly
glad to see him” whenever he returned to Bath. En-
couraged by this good omen, Wilkes replied in a voluminous
* WUkes’s Diwy; Vidt Add. MSS. 30,866 ; Add. MS. 30,880 B, f. 61 ;
Will of William Stafford, proved Sept. 7, 1796 ; European Magazine,
XXX. 230.
348 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
letter as soon as he reached home, a tentative tiiou^ amatory
epistle, for he was wise enough to make a reconnoitre before
venturing upon a decisive attack. Receiving no answer,
he expressed himself more passionately in a second communi-
cation a fortnight later.^ The lady was alarmed. Being
an amiable coquette, she was willing to enjoy all the adula-
tion that a beautiful and lonely woman is able to command,
but in the present instance she perceived that it had been
imprudent to give too much encouragement to such a
pertinacious admirer. So she wrote a cautious though
amicable reply, quoting a paragraph in praise of “ discretion ”
from a book that he had given to her, and telling him that
in consequence of her “ situation ” she dared not continue
the correspondence.
In his next letter Wilkes implored her to revoke this
stem decision. “I approve discretion, but would not let
it run away with my happiness,” he declared. “ Have I
given any such lesson in any book ? I should be like the
eagle,” he added, using a poetic image that has since been
preserved in immortal verse, “ which was killed by an arrow
feathered from his own wing.”* Glad enough to flirt if
she could kee*p her gallant under proper •control, Mrs.
Stafford sent an answer by return of post, acknowledging
that she wished to be his friend, but reiterating her deter-
mination not to write or receive letters. Yet, with artful
coquetry, she replied to another importunate appeal a few
dajre later, assuring him once more that she was looking
forward to his return to Bath.®
On the 25th of February Wilkes revealed his intentions,
which indeed the lady must have understood from the first;
though confident in her power of resistance, she wished to
enjoy the pleasure of being wooed by her impetuous lover.
“ Make me your protector," he pleaded; “I have ahappi®'
* Add. MSS. 30,880 B, ff. 61-3. The whole correspondence of Wilto
and Mrs. Stafiord, a most amusing series of letters, is contained in tids
volume.
* Add, MS. 30,880 B, fi, 63-4.
• Add. MS. 30,880 B, fi. 6 S- 7 *
1778] LADY FRIENDS 349
lot than Cromwell. I dare not be more explicit, and I trust
I need not. ... A beautiful Ionic column is in no small
danger single and unconnected, but forms the best part
of an elegant building. ... A deserted state is unnatural
to a woman, formed by all the virtues and graces to enjoy
life and inspire the most exquisite happiness. ... You
say my best wishes are always yours. Do you really, then,
wish me the best thing on earth ? The object of all my
fond wishes. Do you wish me yourself ? ” *
Once more by return of post the provoking young woman
despatched her reply, a calm, dispassionate analysis of their
mutual relationship, composed with evident care, in which
she reminded him that matrimony was impossible. Platon-
ism ridiculous, while “ the bare idea of any connection less
durable and innocent ’’ had “ something in it too horrible
even to be hinted at.”*
Aware that his coquettish blue-stocking regarded freedom
of speech on the part of a man as an acknowledgment of her
intellectual equality, Wilkes had no fear of offending her by
audacity. Accustomed to success in all his gallantries, it
was not his habit to show a faint heart in addressing a fair ^
lady. The edmposition of two important speeches and
other political business occupied his attention for a fortnight,
after which he returned to his wooing with fresh ardour.
“I am satisfied that you are perfectly well read in the
history of England,” he wrote to her on the 14th of March.
“ We all agree that James II abdicated and deserted, and that
the throne thereby became vacant. I say that Mr. Stafford
abdicated and deserted, and the throne of love is thereby
become vacant. What was the next step of the people
of England ? They filled the vacant throne with that hero
of liberty, the Prince of Orange, and all Europe applauded.
The public prints say that the Assembly of North Carolina
have passed an Act for creating a county in that province
to be called ‘ WUkes’s County.’ I would exchange that
' Add. MS. 30.880 B, ff. 67-8. • Add. MS. 30.880 B, fl. 69-70.
350 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1778
whole county for the ‘property . . . which Mr. Stafford
abdicated and deserted. It cannot therefore be any longer
his in conscience or honour.” In conclusion, he assured
her that he was coming early in April to lay siege to the
deserted home, which her husband had ceased to value.*
Mrs. Stafford was not in the least offended by this freedom
of speech. With a child’s delight in playing with fire, she
revelled in the feverish experience. Still, she had no in-
tention to indulge her passions, though possibly as amorous
as he, realising that, even when no less vdlling than her
pursuer, a woman has need to hesitate because she invari-
ably will have to pay a heavier penalty. But she continued
to tantalise him by letter, misinterpreting his compliments,
scolding him mildly for sending presents, serene and con-
fident in the midst of the most ardent philandering. Un-
happily, she overrated her power of resistance. Wilkes
now called her by her Christian name. Certain of success,
he made arrangements to pay a visit to Bath during the
Easter recess, even naming the time that he would call
upon her. For a little while still she sought to keep him
at bay, threatening at first that a previous engagement
would take her into the country, then pleading a cold,
and finally informing him that her doors could only be
open to him “ when they were so to toute le monde."
Deaf to every excuse, he left London at seven o'clock
on the appointed day, and, reaching Marlborough the same
night, arrived in Bath on the following afternoon. After
being baffled more than once, for she continued to be coy,
he succeeded in obtaining an interview with his “ dear,
adorable Maria ” on the next morning.*
No incident in the life of Wilkes reveals his ruthlessncss
towards women more conspicuously than his pmsuit of
Mrs. Stafford, or in such a cruel shape. Uplike most of the
> Add. MS. 30,880 B, f. 71.
• Add. MS. 30.880 B, fi. 74-9: wakes’s Diary, April la. i?/®*
Vide Add. MS, 30,866 ; Lettert of Wilkes to his Daughter, ii. 77, 80.
1778] LADY FRIENDS 351
objects of his lust, she was a blameless lady, whose reputation
hitherto had been above reproach, in a position of life also
that made the favour he demanded a monstrous sacrifice.
A liaison with him would bring social ruin, while the gener-
ous alimony that she had received from her husband would
cease immediately.^ In return he could offer no equivalent,
being unable to provide her with an adequate establishment,
and it was impossible for her to live under the same roof
as his own daughter. By becoming his mistress she would
have to surrender all that she had in the world in exchange
for his doubtful allegiance.
The first tete-h-tUe, albeit “ the most refined delicacy
was observed on her side,” inspired him with confidence.
After having reiterated a score of times that she would
never consent to a clandestine interview, she had con-
sented. Though hitherto she had declined to receive pre-
sents she accepted a bouquet of roses, and requested him to
frank a letter for her. Two evenings later they met at
the concert, where his compliments did not offend her,
and she talked freely of her matrimonial misfortunes.
Believing that he could read her character, he was sure
that his plan bf seduction must succeed. “The fire of
those eyes told me,” he confessed in a subsequent letter,
“that the powers of nature were transcendent but not
yet called forth, and in that manner I accounted for every-
thing in your history.” Perceiving that the flirtation
gave her pleasure, he was convinced that he would suc-
ceed in capturing the vacant throne which the ignoble
Stafford had abdicated. The next morning he left a
bouquet of violets at her house, and sent another ticket for
a concert. It was suggested too that they should meet at
a ball. It was obvious that she was wavering.®
Happily for the “adorable Maria,” a lucky chance
prevented her from committing more serious folly. One
her best friends, a masterful dame who had been her
' Add, MS. 30,880 B, i , 70. * Add. MSS. 30,880 B, fi. 79-81.
[>778
352 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
confidant and adviser for many years, happened to call on
this momentous Thursday morning, and saw the bouquet and
concert ticket lying upon the table. Somewhat surprised, she
asked the name of the person who sent them. Mrs. Stafford
refused to answer. Suspecting a secret admirer, the friend
proceeded to cross-examine the servants and so discovered the
truth. The good woman was aghast. Realising the serious
peril in which her dear Maria was likely to be involved, she
insisted upon hearing the whole history of her acquaintance
with the wicked Mr. Wilkes. Unable to resist the other’s
strength of will, the unhappy Mrs. Stafford made a full
confession, receiving in return the most excellent advice.
The correspondence with the dangerous libertine was to
cease ; no more of his presents, in any shape or form, were
to be accepted ; he was not to be allowed to visit her again ;
the letters on both sides were to be returned. Wholly
penitent now that she imderstood the enormity of her
indiscretion, Mrs. Stafford proceeded to write a farewell
letter to inform Wilkes of this stem decision.^
He was deeply distressed. In a despondent reply, he
pictured himself “sitting up all night in an elbow chair
before the fire composing melancholy vefses,” oblivious
entirely to the humour of such a spectacle — an elderly
gentleman of fifty-three in dressing-gown and slippers
sighing like a furnace for a lady as young as his own daughter.
Of the interloper it was hard for him to speak in measured
language— “ your female friend” he caUed her— and be
conjured up the vision of a jealous virago vidiose mHw it
was to prevent the pretty ones of her sex from enjoying the
admiration to which they were entitled. Professing to
obey her commands, he continued to assail her nevertheless
with importunate letters. “ I will never cease to love you
with ardour,” he avowed, “ although you shall restrain it
as you please, and the rest I leave to heaven.” Possibly
the picture of her wizened old lover in his lonely vigil ovtf
^ Add. MSS, 50,880 B, fl, 82-90,
.778] LADY FRIENDS 353
the fire awakened her pity, for she wrote to him no less
than three times during the next week, and, while stipulating
that correspondence and Ute-h-tetes must cease, she held
out hopes that they might see each other occasionally in
public places. A severe cold, however, followed by wintry
weather, kept Mrs. Stafford a prisoner in the house for
several days, and Wilkes was obliged to leave Bath without
seeing her again.*
It was the end of their amour. On his return to town
he had to make a pretence of fulfilling his promise to send
back her letters, but he only surrendered three of them,
for his replies were written on all the rest, and he did not
wish her to know that he had kept copies.^ With wonted
patience he waited in silence for nine months, receiving no
tidings of her meanwhile, but still living in hope that she
would relent. Coming again to Bath in December to spend
Christmas, he learnt the sad news that she had left the town,
and that her residence was for sale. On pretence of viewing
the furniture he paid a visit to the empty house. “ I sat
half an hour in your chair,” he wrote to tell her a few days
later, “ I had a groupe of ideas I dare not express. I was
in your bed-chamber, but hurried away from a scene too
luxurious for a warm imagination.”® All his blandish-
ments were in vain. Anxious to become reconciled to
Mr. Stafford, “ the adorable Maria ” was careful to run no
risks. A few months later husband and wife were living
together once more.
Very wisely Wilkes showed neither vexation nor despair,
although the lady, having wit and intelligence as well as
beauty, perhaps had stirred his heart more deeply than any
woman he had ever known. Because he had failed to win
her love, he saw no reason why he should not enjoy her
* Add. MSS. 30,880 B, ff. 83-9 : wakes’s Diary, April li-May 2, 1778 ;
^ide Add. MSS. 30,866 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, a. 85-95 ; Life of
Rilkes, J. Almon, iv. 268, 284.
’ Add. MS. 30,880 B, f, 90.
* Add. MS. 30.880 B, f. 93.
Z
354 life of JOHN WILKES [1779
friendship; an occasional flirtation also seeming hi§^y
probable. At the end of the year, while travelling to Bath
as usual for the Christmas holidays, he stayed for the night
at Salt Hill for the purpose of paying a visit to The Holt,
so that he might make the acquaintance of Mr. Stafford.
Naturally he was not favourably impressed, dubbing him
“ her puppy of a husband,” though glad to find that he
was a Wilkite. “She behaved with grace, elegance and
ease,” he wrote to his daughter the same evening; “he
with awkwardness and absurdity . . . Her character is
exceptional, and she has great sense and wit . , . Mis.
Stafford read with hesitation Lord Kelly’s letter. I was
surprised at her dec 3 q)hering it so quick. . . . She laughingly
asked me what salary I would give her to be secretary to
the Chamberlain. I said, ‘ You may name your own terms.
I have only one condition to insist on, your constant
residence.’ ” *
Evidently the old rascal was encouraged by her com-
plaisance to take further liberties, for when writing to her
from Bath two days later he forwarded at the same time
a ribald French poem. “Mr. Wilkes dares not send the
enclosed very* witty, but too gay, verses to,Mrs. Stafford,”
he explained, though there was no reason at all to enter
into details. “ He therefore seals them up for Mr. Stafford,
who will, he beUeves, be much pleased with them. They are
just .arrived from France.” Knowing the disposition of
the lady, no doubt he felt very sure that she would insist
upon reading the enclosure.*
For many years “ the amiable and lovely Mrs. Stafford,”
as well as “ her puppy of a husband,” remained on the most
cordial terms with John Wilkes. Gratified by the esteem
of a famous man for whose achievements she had a pto-
found respect, although a loyal Tory, she took infinite care
‘ Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, ii. 176-7 ; Add. MSS. 30,880 Ei
fit. 94-7-
» Add. MS. 30,880 B., f. 98.
,779] LADY FRIENDS 355
to retain his friendship, but, taught wisdom by her dangerous
escapade, she would never allow him the slightest licence.
In the matter of presents, too, she was strangely punctilious,
returning every one of the costly things that he insisted
upon buying for her from time to time, greatly to his
chagrin, but making him happy occasionally by sending
him some little gift which she had worked with her own
hands. Whether she grieved him or whether she pleased
him, Wilkes continued to be her ardent admirer, never
fearing to speak openly ol his admiration, but careful to
allow her to prescribe the limits of their intercourse, much
afraid of forfeiting her good opinion. It was a Platonic
flirtation of the most harmless kind. On many occasions
Mr. and Mrs. Stafford entertained the Chamberlain at The
Holt on his journeys to the west, while he often visited
them in Bath, and dined with them at their town house
in New Norfolk Street. They also were frequent guests at
Prince's Court, where the incomparable Polly was a most
cordial hostess, well aware of her father’s attachment to
the beautiful lady.* Of his innumerable amours, no other
perhaps had so agreeable a i'moucmmt, in spite of its
ominous commencement. Having failed to win a woman
as a mistress, it was seldom that he was content to keep
her as a friend.
In the midst of his first bitter disappointment, when
he returned from Bath after his visit to Mrs. Stafford’s
empty home, and realised that his hopes would never be
fulfilled, Wilkes sought consolation immediately with his
usual versatility in the smiles of a new inamorata. The
®ame of the young person was Jenny Wade, a frail adven-
turess, who, lodging at No. 8 Prince’s Court, was for the
'foment his next-door neighbour. For several months they
frequently in maisons de rendezvous, such as Mrs.
.. ‘ Add. MSS. 30,880 B., £E. 98-114 ; Liters of WUkts to his Datighlsr,
"76, 182, 205, 222, 224, 256, 257 : iu. 14, 15, 17, : Wilkes’s Diary,
Add. MSS. 30,866.
356 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1779^80
Muilman*s, off the Strand, and Mrs. Nelson's, in Wardour
Street. Encouraged by his professions of regard, the pretty
courtesan seems to have expected that he would provide
her with an establishment, endeavouring with some craft
to play off a certain Mr. Paul against him. Afraid of the
expense of such monopoly, Wilkes preferred to risk the
chance of competition, Miss Jenny having shown clearly
that she could run into debt as heedlessly as any woman
of the town. So their friendship continued to be a periodical
one, enduring from first to last for the space of a year,
far more than the average length of most of his promis-
cuous love affairs, and although showing much fondness
for her whenever they met, he does not seem to have been
distressed when they parted for the last time.^
Meanwhile he was growing more attached to the placid
Amelia Arnold, who had borne him a daughter. Always
fond of children, the improvident Wilkes was not in the
least dismayed by the arrival of a new dependent, and the
little girl being very pretty made herself the pet and tyrant
of his old age. When his election as Chamberlain had
given him an assured income, he provided his mistress with
a liliputian home in a small row of houses at Kensington
Gore, facing the high road opposite to Prince's Gate, where
the charming Harriet would have the advantage of country
air. Here he was a constant visitor, especially when Polly
Wilkes was away from home, and here he gave dinner
parties occasionally to privileged friends, bringing servants
from Prince's Court to wait at table. There were six long
windows in the small parlour, and mirrors lined the walls
ever3nvhere throughout the house, for its owner loved a bright;
light room, both in the day-time and when the shutters
were drawn.^
1 Add. MSS. 30,880 A., passim.
* Old Court Suburb y Leigh Hunt, pp. 22-36 ; Life and Times of P* w
nolds, i, 20; Mems. of T. A. Hayley, p. 150; Diary of Crabb
i. 300 ; Old and New London^ v. 122 ; Wilkes’s Diary » vide Add.
30,866 ; Life of Wilkes ^ J, Almon, v, 91-6, 140,
1779-80] LADY FRIENDS 357
Never beautiful, Amelia Arnold became quite plain
when the freshness of youth had vanished. Yet Wilkes’s
devotion to her remained unchanged, justifying his boast
that he would have been “ a uxorious husband ” if married
to a sympathetic wife. Whenever convenient, he was
delighted to take her with him on a holiday tour. To her
little circle of humble friends he was kind and generous.
On more than one occasion late in life he paid a visit to the
Isle of Wight with his middle-aged mistress and two of
her elderly gossips. Once a ribald newspaper made a
coarse allusion to her plainness.
“ You see, my dear,” he observed with a wit and tender-
ness that fully consoled the poor woman, “ there has never
been any difference between us.” ^
A week seldom passed without one of “ the usual pere-
grinations to Kensington Gore.” And, while living there,
he was in the habit of walking to and from the Guildhall
in all weathers, as he did at home, somewhat bent by the
weight of years, but shuffling along with quick impatient
strides, paying no heed to the solicitations of the hackney
coachmen in the Knightsbridge Road, who at the sight of
the tall, slender»figure in the cocked hat, scarlet coat and
military boots, vociferated incessantly, “ A coach, your
honour.” *
Such were the principal amours of John Wilkes after he
had passed his fiftieth year. Although the category of his
moral misdeeds is by no means exhausted, the character
of the rest is pretty much the same. Like most of the
men of his time, he lived in open polygamy, rather more
heedlessly and ostentatiously than the majority, but trans-
pessing no more often than many who have been regarded
both by posterity and by their contemporaries as far
superior in Christian virtue. Still, it is not remarkable
‘ t-ift and Times of F. Reynolds, ii. 109.
‘ Recollections of /. O’Keeffe, i. 108 ; Old Court Suburb, Leigh Hunt,
P' 37 : Table Talk of S, Rogers (A. Dyce), p. 43.
358 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES Ciw-80
that he earned the reputation of being the worst of profli-
gates, nor was the character altogether ill-deserved. The
attempt upon the chastity of Maria Stafford shows that
there is no inherent improbability in Horace Walpole’s
story of his seduction of " a maiden of family.” Owing
to the frequent ribaldry of his conversation, he appeared to
revel in libertinism, and many of his friends and all his
foes, witnessing his numerous gallantries, actually believed
that he would “ debauch ” any daughter of theirs, as Dr.
Johnson had foretold, if he had the opportunity.
There was some truth certainly, but a great deal of
falsity also, in this opinion. Like all accomplished rakes,
Wilkes did not begin a courtship if there was no prospect of
success, never taking a liberty until he had received encour-
agement. The most chaste of damsels was safe in his
company, unless she gave him a false impression of her
character. It was her own fault if she had to complain of
his behaviour. To many a charming girl, like Elizabeth
Linley or Julia Brereton or the pretty Misses Molineux, he
was the kindest of friends, receiving in return a warmth
of affection that the nearest of relations would have been
glad to inspile. The defamers of Wilkes were apt to forget
that a man cannot be wicked if a woman says nay.
Much of the evil that was told of him was obviously the
invention of the enemy. To an indignant Tory any stick
seemed good enough to beat " the blasphemer of his God
and the libeller of his king.” Since he took a mischievous
delight in shocking his opponents by exaggerating his
depravity, he played a considerable part also in his own
defamation. No devil could have been so black as he was
painted by those who wished to besmirch him. It would
not have l^n strange if the phrase “ as wicked as Wilkes
had passed into a proverb.
It is a common plea that the men who have lived in an
age of lax morality should not be judged by the standard of
a more virtuous era. The Christian code, estaWidjed for
,773-80] LADY FRIENDS 359
all time, can accept no such extenuation. Yet, this attitude
is hardly reasonable, since the existence of a low state of
morals must indicate that Christian precepts have failed
to impress the popular mind. Although Wilkes adopted a
new mistress almost as often as he bought a new suit of
clothes, the bishops did not refuse to dine with him, and
many a good clergyman was proud to be reckoned his
friend. The sentiment of the Georgian period, which
sanctioned the butcheries of Tyburn, was more than tolerant
to a breach of the seventh commandment. While it is
usual to praise those who are in advance of the spirit of their
age, it seems unjust to condemn those who are content
merely to keep pace with it. Wilkes was no better, and
very little worse, than the average politician of his time,
and, such as he was, he thoroughly deserves the oppro-
brium of a less robust and more hypocritical epoch.
CHAPTER XX
AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO
1780-1788
I N the summer that followed the melancholy visit to
Bath, when Wilkes had sat and sighed in Mrs.
Stafford’s empty home, he was once more in the
midst of a political tumult that affected his repu-
tation more considerably than any event since his release
from prison. After having caused the rising of a hundred
mobs, he was obliged at last to take his share in quelling the
fiercest riot that the capital had ever seen. A woeful object-
lesson showed him the fallacy of the convenient doctrine
that “ the voice of the people is the voice of God.” For
the first time since the accession of George the Third, he
found himself on the side of the Govenunent. It was the
outbreak of the Gordon Riots that caused this remarkable
tergiversation, and he played his new role as resolutely as
he had played the demagogue.
One of the periodical epidemics of religious intolerance
had -swept over the kingdom. All the legions of rabid
Protestantism were ablaze with wrath because Parliament
had put an end to the persecution of Catholics by allowing
them the right to worship in their own faith and by removing
the penalties under which their property had been liable
to forfeiture. With Lord George Gordon as their h3^terical
leader, the most combative of the fanatics began a fierce
agitation against “ Popery,” and it was resolved that a
procession of twenty thousand malcontents should mar^
to St. Stephen’s with a petition for the repeal of the Relief
Act. On the appointed day a turbulent mob, three times
1780] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 361
as large as was expected, surged around the walls of West-
minster Palace. The demonstration speedily became a
riot. Maddened by religious bigotry the crowd was de-
termined that Parliament should obey its commands.
Every member, as he made his way through Palace
Yard, was obliged to assume the blue cockade, and to
promise that he would vote for the repeal of the obnoxious
laws. All who were suspected of sympathising with the
Catholics were seized and beaten, some of them being
grievously hurt before they could be rescued. With wild
shouts of “ No Popery,” a multitude forced its way into the
lobbies, where Lord George Gordon addressed them in an
incendiary speech, denouncing his fellow-members as the
emissaries of Rome. For several hours both the Lords and
the Commons were kept prisoners in their respective Houses,
waiting, sword in hand, for the onslaught of the rioters,
who were expected every moment to burst through the
locked doors. It was not until the arrival of the Guards
that Parliament was rescued from its humiliating position,
when the mob withdrew \vithout any attempt at resistance,
manifesting its zeal for the Protestant faith by burning
two Catholic <»hapels near Golden Square ♦and Lincoln’s
Inn Fields before it dispersed into the slums.^
During the next forty-eight hours the town remained
quiet, but on Sunday night the storm broke out afresh in
the district of Moorfields, where there was a large colony
of Catholics. The streets began to resound with the clatter
^ For an account of the Gordon Riots, see Hist and Post Memoirs
of Sir N, W. Wraxall (Wheatley), i. 231-47 ; Journal of Reign of George
HI, H. Walpole, ii. 403-10 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), xi.
187-215, 220, 222-3 : Letters of Lord Malmesbury^ i. 261-5 ; Rems, of
Angelo (1904), ii. 111-17; Narrative of the Late Disturbances, Wm,
Vincent ; History of London, B. Lambert, ii. 261-72 ; Gentleman* s
Magazine, 1. 267-8, 312-16, 367-9; Annual Register (1780), 271-87;
Pictorial History of England, G. L. Craik, v. 411-17 ; History of England,
W. E, Lecky, iii. 509-22 ; Life of George the Third, J. H. Jesse, ii. 261-86 ;
Parliamentary History, xxi. 664, 669 ; Barnaby Rudge, Charles Dickens ;
Public Advertiser, June 1780.
362 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [i;8o
of hurrying footsteps, which gradually swelled into the dull,
heavy tread of a vast multitude. An angry roar of " No
Popery ” rose incessantly from ten thousand throats. Like
a pack of hungry wolves, the savage rabble had come to hunt
down its prey. Soon there was the sharp crackle of fire,
and the flames of another burning chapel leapt into the still
summer air. Hither and thither, with cheers and curses,
the relentless fanatics hurried along on their work of des-
truction, sacking every house that was known to be the
habitation of a Catholic.
On the morrow, when the king’s birthday should have
been celebrated, the metropolis was in the hands of the
mob. Since the memory of the Wilkes riots was still vivid,
the magistrates, as well as the military, were chary of using
force, fearing that if lives should be lost they might have to
stand a trial for murder before a prejudiced jury. Beyond
the arrest of a few of the insurgents, the authorities made
no serious attempt to suppress the disturbance. Of all the
city magistrates, John Wilkes was the foremost disciple
of the gospel of “ thorough,” urging the Lord Mayor to raise
the posse comitatus without delay, while he declared that
if he had the* power he “would not leaver rioter alive."
It was said appropriately by a critical foe “ that he who
raised mobs could not be afraid to quell them.” ^
For three days and three nights fire and slaughter
raged through the city. What had been at first a mere
outbreak of religious intolerance was changed into a formid-
able rebellion. Most of the criminal classes joined in the riot,
revelling in the facility for pillage. From venting their rage
upon the Catholics, the insurgents began to wreak their
vengeance upon their rulers. Many attempts were made
to storm the Parliament House, the rioters being kept at
bay by the troops of soldiers that blocked every approach
’ Wilkes’s Diary, vide Add. MSS. 30,866 ; Letters of S. Johnson, G. B.
Hill, ii. 174-5 : Letters of Wilkes to his DaugMer, ii. zi 2 . For the conduct
of the Lord Mayor and Aldermen during the riots, see London and ^
Kingdom, R. R. Sharpe, iii. 179-86, 190.
.780] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 363
to Westminster Palace. The house of Justice Hyde, who
had been active in opposing the mob, was levelled to the
ground, and that of Sir John Fielding was wrecked and
plundered. The contents of Lord Mansfield’s residence in
Bloomsbury Square, including a valuable collection of books
and a number of priceless manuscripts, were utterly des-
troyed, while the venerable judge himself nearly fell a victim
to the vandals when the sack of his mansion was begun.
A bonfire blazed in almost every street, fed by the house-
hold goods of those whose homes had been despoiled. All
through the panic-stricken town there was the fierce, hurried
tramp of a frenzied multitude, who thundered forth the
strident war-cry of “ No Popery.”
Newgate Prison fell before the rebels, its massive doors
beaten down by the besiegers, and after the malefactors
had been rescued, the whole edifice was devoured by flames.
Hard by in Holborn, a few hours later, a still more mighty
fire rose from the distillery of a Catholic gentleman, and a
deep stream of raw spirits poured down the gutter along the
roadside from the scores of vats that had been staved in
by the rioters, while a surging crowd lapped it greedily in
their hands. ■•Presently, bursting into flamo, the fiery flood *
swept upon the besotted wretches who clustered around its
brink, and in a moment a mass of burning humanity was
reeling through the streets, shrieking and fighting in the
agonies of death. Scores of men, women and children lay
in drunken slumber on the pavement. There was scarcely
a pause in the work of ruin. From house to house the
riotous mob hurried swiftly with torch and crowbar, bursting
through the doors, flinging the furniture from the windows,
burning and smashing, mad with the lust of loot and de-
vastation. Now and then the sound of guns, as the soldiers
fired upon the people, mingled with the crash of falling
•nasonry. The blaze from the burning buildings illumined
all things as clearly as the light of day.
All throu^ the crisis Wilkes braved with his usual
364 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1780
courage. Perceiving from the first that strenuous measures
were needed to preserve the public peace, he set the right
example to his fellow-aldermen by collecting an armed
company from among the residents of his ward and placed
himself at their head. As soon as it became necessary to
raise a force for the protection of the Bank of England, he
volunteered to assist the soldiers, and on Wednesday evening,
when the tumult was at its height, he took his place in
Threadneedle Street among the defenders. A terrible
spectacle met his eyes. The flames of thirty-six great
fires rolled up above the house-tops, dyeing in bright crimson
the clear, star-lit sky. A mass of battered and blackened
buildings stretched before him. A seething multitude, mad
with drink or wild with religious rage, was howling execra-
tions against the military. Gathering strength at every
instant, reinforced by every thief and cut-throat in the town,
at last towards midnight the mob summoned courage to
make an attack. Led by a youth riding a horse capari-
soned with chains from Newgate, there was a rush towards
the great gate of the bank. With a resolute colonel in
command, and a magistrate hke Wilkes to give counsel,
the gospel of ‘‘ thorough ” was sternly observed. Volley
after volley rang out, and as the daunted crowd wavered
and fell back the soldiers charged upon them. And at
the head of the party that drove the rioters away towards
the river strode the old Buckinghamshire militiaman in
his red coat and three-cocked hat, as gallant a leader as
ever cheered his men on to victory.*
All the next day he was still under arms, taking part
in guerilla skirmishes with the rabble, or parading with a
patrol through the streets. While snatching a moment
to admonish the Lord Mayor he received an intimation
that the Commanding Officer at St. Paul’s was urgently
» Wilkes’s Diary, June 7, 1780 ; Letters of 5 . Johnson, G. B. HiUi
ii. 174-5 : Rems, of H. Angelo (1904), ii. 114; Public Advertiser, J»n« ‘8
and 14, 1780.
.780] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 365
in need of reinforcements, so, hurriedly collecting a handful
of troops, he marched them off to the scene of action. All
night long, until five o’clock on the following morning, the
tireless alderman remained on guard in St. Sepulchre’s
Churchyard, beside Newgate prison, where the riot had
been fiercest and which even yet was one of the danger
spots of the metropolis, in charge of “ a good party of horse
and foot ” and with his faithful followers “ the armed
inhabitants of the ward ” of Farringdon Without. In the
midst of this strenuous employment he managed to find
time to send a note to his daughter to tell her that he was
safe. On the next night, too, he was “ doing duty ” again
at St. Sepulchre’s till long after daybreak, having come
thither early in the afternoon when he had finished his work
at Guildhall. On the morrow he came to grips once more
with the rioters, dispersing a great mob in Fleet Street,
and seizing the publisher of a seditious paper. For almost
a week he patrolled his ward from time to time thoroughly
with a party of horse and foot, making many arrests, and
holding a court each day until late in the evening for the
examination of the prisoners. When order was restored^
he received the thanks of the Privy Council for his services.*
Bitterly indignant at the conduct of some of his col-
leagues during the disturbances, Wilkes took the first
opportunity of making a protest in the House of Commons.
In the debate on the King’s Speech respecting the riots,
when Parliament met once more after its long adjournment,
he made a vehement attack upon Lord Mayor Kennett,
declaring that “ if proper care had been taken in the city
by the first magistrate the mischief done there might have
been prevented.” In a later speech on the same day he
censured his old comrade, the docile BuU, still more severely,
‘ Wilkes’s Diary, June 8-i8, 1780 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter,
>i. *12-13 : cf. Hist, and Post, Memoirs of Sir N. W. Wraxall (Wheatley),
'■ 249 : Add. MS. 30,87a, f. 196 : Correspondence of George HI with Lord
^ortk, u. 324 ; Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), xi. 223 ; Literary Ante-
^les, J. Nichols, ix. 464 ; Morning Post, June 13, 1780,
366 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1780-81
accusing him, with some truth, of being in sympathy with
the rioters, and alleging that he had walked away from St.
Stephen’s on the afternoon that the petition was presented
arm in arm with Lord George Gordon.*
In the following year Wilkes lost his brave old mother,
who died on the 22nd of January at the age of eighty-one.*
Since the death of her eldest daughter, the gentle Sally,
who, poor valetudinarian that she was, had never married,
the venerable old lady had removed from Hart Street,
Bloomsbury, to Old Palace Yard, Westminster, so as to be
near the little house in Prince’s Court. Left in comparative
affluence by her husband, she was always able to keep a
coach, and had faithful servants to care for her. In later
years her children were a source of much sorrow. The death
of poor Sally, which deprived her of a loving companion,
was a still greater blow, because it was hastened by the
tempestuous Mrs. Hayley, who distressed the invalid deeply
by invading the sick-room to pick “ an outrageous quarrel ”
with her mother. Israel Wilkes, her eldest son, gave her
many anxious moments also, being vacillating and impro-
vident, a lethargic, plausible, Micawber-like gentleman,
wandering over' Europe, then to Africa, and» eventually to
the West Indies in the hope that something would turn up.
The docile Heaton, too, was as inefficient as he was amiable,
and, after reducing the family business to a state of bank-
ruptcy, was obliged to become a partner in a small firm of
coal merchants.®
Undoubtedly it was at Prince’s Court that old Mrs.
* Parliamentary History, xxi. 701-2 ; Journal of the Reign of George lU,
H. Walpole, ii. 418.
* Fiske Pedigree at Herald’s College; Gentleman's Magatine (1781),
p. 47 : London Magatine (1781), p. 56.
* References to the mother of John Wilkes will be found in Add. MSS.
30,869, ff. 98, 119, 158 ; 30,879, ff. 55, no, 126 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Ahnon,
iv, 142 : Will of Sarah Wilkes, P.C.C. 53, Webster ; Wilkes’s Diary,
passim ; Public Advertiser, March 28, 1771 ; Trtu Briton, Dec. 30, 1797-
Also her numerous letters in the Wilkes MSS. sold at Sotheby’s on Aug- h
1913-
,781] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 367
Wilkes spent the happiest hours of her life. Of all her
grandchildren the tactful Polly was her prime favourite,
having been her confidant since childhood in everything
relating to her celebrated son, and she often sought the good
oificcs of the girl when she desired to influence the father.
Through this loving alliance the deepest affection had
always existed between the grandparent and the grand-
daughter. Intensely proud of the famous John, taking an
absorbing interest in every incident of his career, the fond
mother was ever on the watch to protect him from the con-
sequences of his indiscretions, never failing to deliver a
wholesome lecture if it seemed necessary. In spite of the
frequent differences of opinion Wilkes was a devoted son,
never lacking in attention to the old lady, and receiving
her opinions with filial respect. Although he may not
always have acknowledged it, he was grateful for her
solicitude and generally followed her advice.
A splendid letter, which led him to break his connection
with the notorious Mrs. Gardiner, is a typical example of
her vigilance and outspokeimess :
“May I not flatter my Self,” she wrote^to him from
Hart Street on Ihe 23rd of October, 1771, “ that the near
connection with a dear Son will supersede apologising for
the free Contents of this Billet ? My duty and affection
will not suffer me silently to lament your present very
obnoxious conduct in making so frequent visits to the
infamous Mrs. Gardiner, unhappily situated in my neigh-
bourhood.* A late visit in your Sheriff’s Chariot (which
has been repeated too) has been severely censured, but not
More than such an Insult upon Public decency merited!
Hy Intelligence came from Conduit Street, so distant has
it already travelled. A Gentleman and Friend to the
Pubhc Cause then address’d you with an admonition not
to enter that House. He afterwards expressed his concern
^ Mrs. Gardiner lived in a house at the corner of Charlotte Street and
Tiiomey Street, Bloomsbury.
368 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [178.-84
in the Strongest and most Pathetic Terms, said it was a
dagger to his heart. The populace that was gather’d
would not permit the Blinds to be drawn up. They Hiss’d
you, as a detestation of you entering a notorious Bawdy
House. You are continually observ’d and watch’d, as is
also Mr. , no stranger to you ! ’Tis true that I have
the pity of the Neighbourhood (for ’tis publickly talked),
which in this case is a sad mortification. I see the fatal
Consequences from the loss of Popularity, which will not
only disserve the best of causes, but even sink a great Patriot
into Contempt. Many of the Midling Class of People
(thank Heaven) revere virtue and see Vice countenanced
by a Magistrate with double abhorrence, whose duty it is
to suppress it. Let me now Conjure you, with the most
ardent Parental affection, to bid a final adieu to all Infamous
and Ruinous Connections, and this in particular. 0 ! my
Dear Son do not sacrifice Temporal and Eternal Felicity
to any Criminal Indulgences. But let that wisest Gift
Reason regulate and subdue Inordinate Passions, which will
be the Noblest Triumph and reward you with Inexpressible
Satisfaction and Tranquillity, and you will then cause a
Mother’s Heart to Sing for Joy, who is most Affectionately
yours, S. Wilkes.” *
Three years later, on the 3rd of April, 1784, John Wilkes
became a widower. “ Mrs. Wilkes died ” was the laconic
entry in his diary on the date in question. For four days
he dined alone with his daughter or took a solitary meal
at Kensington Gore, entertaining no friends until the 8th
of the month, and not accepting any invitation to dinner
for a fortnight. During the space of six months he wore
mourning. Beyond these conventional observances he
showed no sign of sorrow. Latterly, since the death of
Mrs. Meade, the ancient animosity between the incongru-
> Letter of Sarah Wilkes, dated Oct. 23, 1771, in the Wilkes MSS.
sold at Sotheby’s, Aug. i, 1913.
AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 369
ous pair had lost much of its bitterness, and there had
been several false rumours of a reconciliation. For many
years Polly had been in the habit of pa5dng frequent visits
to her mother’s country house at Clapham with her father’s
approval, while Mrs. Wilkes sometimes spoke kindly of her
husband in the girl’s presence. In comparison with the
acrimony of former years this was a great advance in mutual
tolerance.
The death of Mrs. Meade, an implacable enemy of her
son-in-law, did not come until it was too late to blot out the
past, and her vindictive will would have made it impossible
under any circumstances to put an end to the quarrel.
To the pious mind of Mrs. Wilkes the constant infidelities
of her husband were the deadliest of sins, the arrogance of
feminine self-restraint preventing her from understanding
that a man who is deserted by his wife does not become
necessarily a misogynist. On his side he had regarded
her always as “ the woman in the world the most unfit for
him," and, while professing to hold her in esteem, he acknow-
ledged that all his affection had vanished. Many years
before her death her lethargy had grown into an absolute
disease, for evert in summer weather and wfien in perfect
health she scarcely ever went out of doors. However great
the faults on his part, Wilkes certainly had the misfortune
to marry a dull, lazy, and unaffectionate wife.*
During this summer there was grave discord in the
Hayley family, “rhe alderman had died three years pre-
viously, leaving a considerable fortune invested in business.
In the administration of his estate " the brimstone qualities "
of his widow manifested themselves once more as she began
to quarrel with her daughter over money matters, declining
to observe the terms of her husband’s will. For in the
' For references to Mrs. John Wilkes, see Add. MSS. 30,868, ff. 154,
*72; 30.879, ff. 30, 32, 38, 40, no; Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon, iv. 164,
289 ; Letters of Wilkes and Dell, April 26 and May 3, 1757 ; Will of
Mary Wilkes, P.C.C. 295, Rockingham; The North Briton (W. Biiigiey)|
i., Part I, p. Ixxxvi. ; European Magaxine, xxxiii. 17.
370 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.7*4
previous autumn Miss Hayley had been married to
Robert Baker, a captain in the Devon Militia, and her
mother, regarding her son-in-law as a mere fortune-hunter,
tried to prevent the bride from gaining possession of her
inheritance. A lawsuit ensued. Captain Baker, who was
deep in debt, being compelled meanwhile to take his wife
to St. Omer to escape from his creditors. The expectation
of a grandchild momentarily softened Mrs. Hayley’s heart,
and upon her arrival in Boston, whither she had been obliged
to sail to look after her property, she sent a conciliatory
letter and a present of money. Business worries, however,
detained her in America, and some time elapsed before the
young couple could pay their debts and return to England.
Fortune was kind to them in after years, greatly to the joy
of Wilkes, who loved his “ sweet niece,” for Captain Baker
earned distinction as a soldier and was created a baronet.*
By his gallant conduct during the Gordon Riots Wilkes
made his position as Chamberlain of London invulnerable
to all attack for many years. In any case it is doubtful
whether the ministerial party would have followed the bad
example of contesting the office as long as he held it with
propriety, and as he proved a most capable manager of the
city accounts, there were no grounds for opposing his annual
re-election. Naturally, a host of sceptics deprecated the
appointment of an incorrigible spendthrift as treasurer of the
corporation, the fact that he was placed in charge of " the
monies, lands and goods, of the city orphands ” eliciting all
the old insinuations about the Foundling Hospital. With
imperturbable good-humour Wilkes merely laughed at these
incredible aspersions.
"Have you seen the infamous libel against you,"
demanded an indignant friend, " in to-day’s paper ? ”
> Add. MS. 30,872, £, 255 ; The Sexagenarian, W. Beloe, i. 329 :
0/ Wilkes to his Daughter, ii. 74, lii. 85, 89, 147, 135 ; Life of Witk>^’
J. Almon, V. 108, 114; Burke’s Peerage; Gentleman’s Magaxine [ipin
p. 804 : (1805), 1 , p. 295 ; Maryland Journal, June 4, 1784 :
chusetts Sentinel, May 26, 1784.
,784] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 371
“ Yes,” chuckled Wilkes, “ I’ve just been writing to the
printer of another paper to copy it.”
Once a political antagonist, wishing to insult him in
public, accused him to his face of all sorts of crimes. After
listening patiently to the tirade Wilkes bent towards his
defamer with a quiet smile.
“ You have a wretched memory,” he observed, plea-
santly ; “ you have forgotten all about the Foundling
Hospital ! ” *
Wilkes could afford to laugh at his enemies. The income
of his office was a splendid one. Although he did not re-
ceive more than £500 per annum in direct payments from
the city his emoluments amounted to more than £1500 a
year, the perquisites of the post compensating for the
smallness of the salary. Since all the revenues of the cor-
poration passed through his account there was often a
large balance in his hands, and the opportunities of sub-
scribing for Government loans on favourable terms were
innumerable. Like ministerial paymasters and army com-
missaries in those easy times the Chamberlain of London
was entitled to ,the profits of this stock-jobbing, while he
ran no risk in investing public money in public funds.
Whenever there was a balance in the city treasury he was
able to make lucrative deals in Navy and Victualling Bills
or Long and Short Annuities.* Little wonder that he
described his office as “ a post adequate, after the payment
of my debts, to every wish I can form at 53 : profit, patron-
age, and extensive usefulness, with rank and dignity.” *
* Public Advertiser, Oct. 26, lyyd; European Magazine, xxxiii. 227:
cf. Letters of Mrs. Delany, v. 493. The duties of the Chamberlain are
set forth in History of London, B. Lambert, iii. 215, 224 ; History of London,
!• Entick, iii. jag, 338.
* Letters of H. Walpole (Toynbee), xi, 66 ; City Account Book for
■789-90, ff. 132^ 2^8, 304 ; Accounts of John Wilkes, Chamberlain of City
London for 1794, 1795, 1796, kindly furnished by Dr. R. R. Sha^e
rom the Account B<x>ks at Guildhall ; Report of Committee for Letting
o City Lands on June 30, i8oi ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, iii.
«- 3 . 141.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, v, 37.
372 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [I78o-S!1
At the same time he was careful to do nothing irregular,
relying meticulously upon precedent in all his monetary
dealings, keeping his accounts in perfect order, knowing
full well that many of his old enemies were eager to accuse
him of peculation. A Scottish common-councillor, named
John Cowley, soon established himself as a permanent
censor, criticising all the financial statements of the Chamber-
lain persistently, but notwithstanding the most watchful
surveillance he was never able to lay his finger upon a flaw.'
Many of his colleagues also were displeased that Wilkes
should remain an alderman, it having been always the
custom hitherto for the Chamberlain to resign his gown.^
With these exceptions little hostile criticism was raised.
In every respect Wilkes proved a most efficient city
treasurer, none of his predecessors having been more regular
in attending to their duties, or discharging them with such
patient thoroughness. It was apparent, moreover, that his
personality conferred an unusual distinction upon the
office.*
In one particular he could display his irrepressible
humour without loss of dignity. Every morning, except
during the vacations, the Chamberlain held a court for the
enrolling of apprentices, and the daily homilies that Wilkes
addressed to the youths who came before him, though
spoken with the most solemn gravity, were full of delicious
drollery. More than a generation later Charles Mathews,
the great mimic, was able to convulse an audience by
giving an imitation of the late John Wilkes admonishing a
small boy.* One of these apprentices himself, a stage-
struck lad named Thomas Dibdin, who laid a complaint at
* Gentleman’s Magatine (1788), p. 559 ; (1823), Part II, p. 472 ; 2"*'
Oracle, Dec. 30, 1797; Morning Post, March 24, 1786: June 20, 1788;
Jan. 12, Feb, 19, 1791 ; April 4, 1794.
* Morning Post, June 14, 1791.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 200; Letters of Wilkes to his Dang^’
i. 122.
* Diary of Crabb Robinson, ii. 229 : cf. The World, Dec. 31, 1787.
,782] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 373
the Chamberlain’s office because his master had thrashed
him for playing with a toy theatre when he ought to have
been at work, has described how the spectators in court
used to appreciate the wit and wisdom of the old patriot.
And as Wilkes was making peace between the aggrieved
youth and his choleric master young Dibdin noticed that
“while the worthy magistrate exhorted Sir William he
appeared to be looking full at me ; and while he admonished
me his eyes seemed fixed on Sir William.” ^
After the death of Rockingham in the summer of 1782
a slow but sure metamorphosis began to take place in the
political opinions of John Wilkes. A gradual estrangement
from Charles Fox soon brought about a complete severance
of old ties. Up to the end of 1781 he had been one of
the most loyal supporters of the member for Westminster,
appearing on his platforms and acquiescing in his leader-
ship.* Then, within the space of twelve months. Fox was
responsible for three acts, which, in the opinion of Wilkes,
were wholly alien to Whig principles. He tried to prevent
the resolution concerning the Middlesex election from being
expunged from the Journals of the House. He retired
from office because he disapproved of Shelburne as Rock-
ingham’s successor, although the ministry was confronted
with the mighty task of making peace with America.
Finally, he rent the party in twain by a coalition with Lord
North, the late Tory Premier. It seemed to Wilkes that
the last of the old Whigs had died with their late leader,
and that independence more than ever before must in
future be his nUtier. At the same time he began to be a
regular attender at the king’s levee.®
Within a few months he was acting in violent opposi-
tion to the coalition Government under Lord North, which
* Reminiscences of Thomas Dibdin, i. 29-35.
* Morning Post, Feb. 4, 1780; Morning Herald, Dec. ii, 1781.
* Morning Herald, Aug. 10 and 28, Nov. 13, 1782 ; Jan. 28, Feb. 27,
starch 15, April 8, 1783 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, i. 124 ; Life
Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 343.
374 life of JOHN WILKES [.7*3-84
had driven Lord Shelburne out of office. From the first
he had regarded it as a “ monstrous, unnatural union of
incongruous, discordant particles that could only be brought
to coalesce for the division of the public spoils,” and when
Fox, as Secretary of State, introduced his India Bill
Wilkes was one of the most vehement critics of the new
measure.^ Beyond all doubt his sincerity was imquestion-
able, whatever may have been the value of his judgment.
In his opinion the proposed act was a violation of the Charter
of John Company, while it left the patronage of India a
prey to the greediness of faction. It seemed to him that
Lord North, who had striven to crush the freedom of
America, was prompting his colleague in a sinister design
against the liberties of the Anglo-Indian.* A strong vein of
imperialism, moreover, the heritage of his early intercourse
with Pitt, influenced Wilkes’s sympathies. The splendid
deeds of Warren Hastings had fired his imagination, and
he believed that in order to preserve our empire in the
East Parliament must be loyal to the traditions of the great
proconsul.® Holding such views, he rejoiced in the over-
throw of Fox and North, welcoming the appointment of the
younger Pitt as Prime Minister. '
Early in the new year he was favoured with a unique
opportunity — dissociated ostensibly from party politics— of
emphasising his approval of the youthful Premier. When
the freedom of the City of London was presented to Pitt
at Grocer’s Hall on the 28th of February it became the
duty of the Chamberlain to make the official speech. As
always on such occasions Wilkes delivered an admirable
oration. At his first reference to the name of Chatham
his voice trembled and his eyes filled with tears, for, not-
withstanding the lamentable termination of their friendship,
^ Parhanientary History ^ xxiv. 15-28 ; Speeches of Mr, Wilkes^ p. 39 ® •'
Hist, and Post. Mems. of Sir N. W. Wraxall (Wheatley), iii. 178 ; MormH
Herald, Dec. 9, 1783.
* Speeches of Mr. Wilkes, p. 389.
® Speeches of Mr. Wilkes, p. 379.
''I k I'*, ’K, w ('i)A ,1 . 1 I 10
.784] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 375
he never lost his old reverence for his great leader.* “ The
administration of your noble father gave us security at
home,” he continued in the imperialist style of which he
was so fond, " carried the glory of this nation to the utmost
height abroad, and extended the bounds of the Empire to
countries where the Roman eagle never flew.” *
Naturally, many of his supporters were indignant that
he should tolerate a minister nominated by the king,
alleging that his opposition to the India Bill was caused
by the fear of offending the City of London.* At the general
election following the dissolution of Parliament a three-
cornered fight took place for the representation of the county
of Middlesex. Wilkes appeared as a joint candidate with
William Mainwaring, one of the “ King’s friends,” while
George Byng, his late colleague, opposed him. At no time
during the contest was his triumph ever in doubt. Relying
upon the old familiar battle-cries of shorter Parliaments
and a reform of the House of Commons he gained an easy
victory over the partisans of the coalition, his nominee
being elected with him. A scrutiny, prompted by the
disappointed Byng, was unsuccessful.*
The appearance of Wilkes among the supporters of the
king and Pitt in their contest with Fox and North— in
which as heretofore he was on the popular side — delighted
the humorists exceedingly. Squibs and caricatures were
scattered broadcast, and one of the latter, representing
George the Third in the act of embracing the old agitator,
‘ Anecdotes of Chatham, J. Almon, iii. 562 ; Mirabeau's Letters during
his Residence in England, i. 95 ; European Magazine, xxxiii. 229.
• Speeches of Mr. Wilkes, p. 441 ; London’s Roll of Fame (Cassell) ;
Town and Country Magazine (1784), p. 164 ; Morning Post, March i and 10,
1784.
’ Morning Post, Jan. 27, 1784 ; Add. MS. 30,895, f. 68.
* Representative History of Great Britain, T. H. B, Oldfield, iv, 180 ;
Life of E, Malone, p. 563 ; Add. MSS. 30,895, ff. 58, 59, 6i, 70, 72 ; Public
Advertiser, April 24, 27, May 3, 1784; Gentleman's Magazine (1784),
p. 381 ; c£. Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, iii. ii, 12, 106 ; William
Pitt and Nation^ Revival, J. Holland Rose, p. 171. The figures were :
William Mainwaring 2117, John Wilkes 1858, George Byng 1787.
376 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.784
expressed very neatly the sentiment of the hour.* At last
both the monarch and the subject might have exclaimed, in
the words of Dr. Johnson at a similar reconciliation, “ the
contest is now over.” Once at a levee the king, who
frequently had a chat with his former enemy, happened to
mention the name of Sergeant Glynn.
“ Sir," replied Wilkes, with perfect nonchalance, " he was
no friend of mine. He was a Wilkite, which I never was.”*
While dining with the Prince of Wales, who was now
on very bad terms with his father, Wilkes was called upon
for a toast. Without a moment’s hesitation he gave ” the
King and long life to him.”
" Since when have you become so loyal ? ” sneered the
unfilial prince, laughing.
'* Ever since I have had the honour of knowing your
Royal Highness,” replied Wilkes, accompanying the re-
proach with a respectful bow.®
One day as he was walking along the street an old
woman cried out, " Wilkes and Liberty.”
" Be quiet, you old fool,” growled the ex-demagogue.
“ That’s all over long ago.” *
Political opponents ridiculed his apostasy in a hundred
satires, the following effusion being attributed to Sheri-
dan : —
” Johnny Wilkes, Johnny Wilkes,
Thou greatest of bilks.
How changed are the notes you now sing !
Your famed Forty-five
Is Prerogative,
And your blasphemy ‘ God save the King.’ ” ®
^ Caricature History of the Georges, J. Wright, p. 314.
• Life of Lord Eldon, H. Twiss, ii. 356.
• The Courts of Europe, H. Swinburne, i. 399 ; Life of Lord Eldoit,
H. Twiss, ii. 353 ; European Magasine, xxxiii. 226 ; cf. Literary Anecdotes,
E. H. Barker, ii. 10.
• The Bedford Correspondence, iii. 52.
• Life of Sheridan, T. Moore, ii. 81 ; Mems, of Thomas Moore, ii. 3x2.
,784-87] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 377
With a great man’s reverence for the greatness of another
Wilkes had unbounded admiration for the genius of the
young Premier. " Mr. Pitt is greatly improved as an
orator," he declared, a month after Parliament had Ihet.
“He has more smoothness and grace, more Attic laugh
and easy irony, without the sharpness and gall of the last
session. Mr. Fox’s power declines hourly.” A week later
he was rejoicing in the discomfiture of the enemy. “ The
great majority of the present administration has driven the
Opposition almost to despair, while Mr. Fox loses his temper
more and more every day.” To the financial policy of the
new Government he gave his cordial approval. “ Mr. Pitt
is greatly extolled,” he observed on the eve of the Budget,
“ for his late proposition to abolish smuggling and lay an
adequate duty on windows. ... He establishes himself
more and more in the hearts of the people.” *
For the most part he continued to observe his habit of
silence, only addressing the House occasionally in a brief
speech. It was not until three years later that he was
constrained at length to intervene in a notable debate,
the impeachment of Warren Hastings calling forth a last
oration. Believing that this illustrious friend was the
victim of " the same envious faction ” that had persecuted
his noble friend Rodney, he tiumed upon the accusers in
his wrath, animated by all the old fire and passion that
had borne him through the great battles of former times.
He was an old man now, old teyond his years. The scanty
locks, brushed neatly over his forehead, were crusted with
powder to conceal his baldness. Clean white ruffles and an
embroidered vest were in strange contrast with his faded
red coat. The heavy jaw hung down truculently, and as he
spoke the husky voice swelled into a hoarse note of in-
dignation. He was defending a friend and preaching the
gospel of imperialism, and he felt the inspiration of a
great cause.
* Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, lii. 23, 27, 61.
378 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.78,
The unjustness of the impeachment was the whole burden
of his speech. “ The late Governor-General of Bengal has
been frequently, by a right honourable gentleman, com-
pared to the Roman Praetor of Sicily, Verres. The fairness
of the comparison has not, I believe, been so much thought
of as am indirect and sly compliment to the original accuser
among us. He imagined that an association of ideas would
naturally lead the mind to the Prince of Roman orators, to
Cicero, our protot3q)e, the accuser of Verres. I do not quite
comprehend the justness of the comparison. In the im-
peachment of Verres every city, town, and village of Sicily,
except Syracuse and Messian, . . . concurred. The im-
peachment of the late Governor-General of Bengal has been
announced to the public above four years. Where, sir,
are the petitions to this House against him from a single
town or village, or the most inconsiderable body of men,
or even an individual in all Asia ? . . . The fact, sir, is
that no man was ever more beloved throughout Indostan
than Mr. Hastings. His departure was lamented by all
the natives and Europeans as a general calamity. They
gave him every public and private testimony of affection
and esteem as their common father and friend. The volun-
tary tribute of tears was paid by a whole people. It was
reserved for a faction and party in this House ... to
hold us out to the ridicule of mankind by this Parliamentary
inquisition, this persecution of exalted merit by an im-
peachment.” ^
It was acclaimed a superlative speech, the best that he
had ever delivered, though it is strange that he, of all mem
neglected to affirm the unanswerable truth that whenever
the legislature has attempted to usurp the functions of the
judiciary it has always committed a political blunder and
generally has been guilty of the gravest injustice.
' Speech of Mr, Wilkes^ May 9, 1787 ; Parliamentary History ^
1 1 01, 1102; Hist, and Post, Mems, of Sir N. W, Wraxall (Wheatley/i
V. 2~3 ; The World, May 10, 1787 ; Gentleman's Magazine (1787),
p. 1134 ; European Magazine, xi. 425.
.788] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 379
Although Hastings, and Rodney were his bosom friends,
and he was a welcome guest in the houses of the great,
Wilkes did not neglect his little circle of old acquaintances.
In Prince’s Court itself there were his neighbours. Colonel
and Mrs. Gordon — ^with whom both he and Polly dined more
often than with anyone else — ^and an old lady named Mrs.
Smith, one of his most appreciative gossips. Of the Moli-
neux family he was as fond as ever, both he and his daughter
paying much attention to “ the widow," who divided her
time between Bath and London, separated from her husband.
Betsy, the prettiest of the girls, was now married to Sir
William Burnaby, a captain in the navy, who was as much
attached to Wilkes as his young wife. With Mr. and Mrs.
Swinburne, the happy pair to whom he had sent the
pheasant, he was on terms of the closest intimacy, for, being
great travellers, they knew many of his continental ac-
quaintances. Mademoiselle D’Eon, as he dubbed him,
was often his guest, and also Edmund Dayrell, the old
henchman of Lord Temple. Almost every day, when he
did not dine out, he had friends to diimer.*
For many years Wilkes had been anxious to possess a
residence in the Isle of Wight, but it was not’until the spring
of 1788 that he discovered one that was suitable. It was
a tiny two-storied house, standing alone on the gorse-
covered downs above the sea in the midst of Sandown Bay,
half a mile nearer to Shanklin than the fort, with an open
view of the expansive shore as far as the cliffs on either side.
There were only a few rooms in the little dwelling, but it
had a picturesque exterior with its latticed windows and
creeper-clad walls, and Wilkes, fascinated by the wind-
swept situation and the beautiful coast, fell in love with
it at first sight. Before leaving he tried to persuade
Colonel Barker, the owner of the property, to give him a
lease of Sandham Cottage for twenty-one yedrs, and suc-
' Wilkes’s Diary, vide Add. MSS. 30,866, and Wilkes’s List of
Addresses, vide Add. MSS. 30,894, passim.
38 o life of JOHN WILKES f,;**
ceeded in obtaining one of fourteen. It was agreed that
he should take possession at once.^
With his usual energy he lost no time in trying to improve
his little home. Having acquired about four acres of land
he was able to gratify his taste for landscape gardening,
though handicapped greatly by the barrenness of the soil.
In a little while he had altered the property beyond recog-
nition. Young shrubberies of stunted trees were stru ggling
against the gale, and an apple orchard blossomed abund-
antly. A broad grass walk, over a hundred yards in length,
ivith seats and arbours here and there, stretched along the
front of the house, parallel with the shore. Winding paths
with herbaceous borders cut their way through the bracken
and furze-bushes of the heath. A large pond, well stocked
with fish, adjoined a prolific kitchen-garden, and in a
secluded part of the grounds, beneath a little grove of
cypresses and weeping willows, there stood a Doric column,
bearing the porph)ay urn presented by Winckelmann,
engraved with a Latin inscription to the memory of Charles
Churchill. Within the pedestal, which was made of oak,
the old jester kept a fine stock of port wine, whispering to
the friends whom he allowed to taste it that he could not
possibly offer a better sacrifice to the manes of the dead poet.
Everyone agreed that he had succeeded in making a very
fine garden on the wind-swept downs of Sandown Bay.*
A great lover of birds Wilkes kept a menagerie of all
sorts, building several large aviaries in various parts of the
grounds. There was a spacious " pheasantry,” of which he
was very proud, and a long “ gallery ” contained a hetero-
geneous collection of fowls. Dovecotes were dotted about in
profusion, while to attract the wild birds boxes, full of com,
hung from every tree. Little flocks of pigeons were always
> Add. MSS. 30,873, if. 91, 93, 96, 113 ; 30,874, f. 35 ; Life of WilheS)
J. Almon, V. 78; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, iv. i-*; WUk®*
Diary, May 30, 1788.
* Gentleman’s Magazine (1794), Part II, pp. 779-80 ; (1804), ran >
p. 17 ; (1805), Part I, pp. 54-6 ; European Magazine^ xxxiii.
.78fi] AN EXHAUSTED VOLCANO 381
strutting over the sloping lawns, or looking down from the
house-tops. Whenever these were admired by a visitor
Wilkes always spoke of his difficulty in getting them to
stay with him. *
" I bought my pigeons in England and Ireland and
France,” he observed sorrowfully, " but they all flew away.
Then, at last,” he added with a twinkle in his eye, ‘‘ I got
some from Scotland. They never returned.” ^
Of all the new erections in the garden of Sandham Cottage
the strangest by far were two spacious pavilions, made
of canvas floorcloth, manufactured at the Knightsbridge
factory, a fashionable form of construction at that period.
The larger of the two, a room eight yards in length over-
looking the sea, full of rare china and costly furniture, was
dedicated to the incomparable Polly, an inscription on the
wall announcing that it had been erected ” To Filial Piety
and Mary Wilkes.” In the other, which was known as the
Tuscan room, painted a dead white, there was a numerous
collection of engravings and some beautiful satin-wood
chairs. Although only habitable in the summer time, these
airy apartments were invaluable when he wished to entertain
his friends.** * *
In this lonely little place near Sandown Fort— -his
" villakin ” as he called it— Wilkes took the most intense
pride, visiting it often twice a year, and living there for two
months every summer. Sometimes Mrs. Arnold and little
Harriet would keep him company for a part of his holiday,
after which Polly would come to stay with him, never
arriving, however, until the others had departed. Never
' Morning Post, July 14, 1791 ; Records of My Life, J. Taylor, i. 112 ;
Life of Frederick Reynolds, ii. 105 ; cf. Add. MSS. 30,873, f. 172 ; 30,874,
f. 10.
* Tie Isle of Wight, E. Boucher James, ii. 542-7 ; History of the Isle
0/ Wight, W. H. D. Adams, pp. 203-4 : Towr of the Isle of Wight, J. Hassell,
>>• 31-2 ; A Description of the Isle of Wight, H. C. Englefield, Plate XIX ;
Diaries of Mrs. P. L. Powys, pp. 265-6 ; European Magaxine, xxxiii. 131 ;
Gentleman's Magatine (1794), Part II, p. 779 : Add. MSS. 30873, ff, 111-98 ;
30874, ff. 10-85.
[1788
382 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
at any period of his life had Wilkes been happier than now,
never, on the whole, had he been in better health. With
an ^mple income, free from all anxieties for the future, and
the favourite of a host of friends, he was not the least re-
gretful that he had become an extinct volcano.
CHAPTER XXI
THE END
1788-1797
W HEN the king was taken ill, and it seemed un-
likely that he would recover his reason, Wilkes
passed through a period of much anxiety.
For him the political situation was full of
menace. If a Regency were established it was probable
that he would lose his seat in Parliament, and possibly be
deposed from the office of Chamberlain. From his point
of view it was most important that the Prince of Wales
should not be invested with the royal authority, for in such
a contingency it was inevitable that Fox would come into
power. Although still claiming a nominal independence,
Wilkes’s political fortunes were bound up with those of Pitt
and the Tories, *and it was certain that his old allies would
be glad to punish him for his apostasy.^
During the three months that the king’s malady was
at its height, Polly Wilkes was staying in Paris on a long
visit to her old friend, Madame La Valli^re, Duchesse de
Chastillon, and all through the momentous winter she
received the latest bulletins from her father, who was ever
on the watch for news of the royal invalid. Upon each
favourable s5Tnptom he dwelt joyously, as though he were
announcing the convalescence of a beloved relative, “ thank-
ing Heaven ” when there was improvement, exulting greatly
when the patient slept or was able to take food. " The
stories of the King, Queen, and youngest Princess," he
' Wilkes joined with Fox in opposing the Shop Tax in 1787, Vide
Magarint, vol. Ivii., Part I, p. 144.
383
384 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1788-89
wrote in a burst of feeling, “ are so- affecting that I have
not courage to transcribe them.” ^ A very different Wilkes
indeed this sentimentalist who paid " the voluntary tribute
of tears ” to the pathos of royal domesticity from the
malicious author of ” No. 45.” The jest of his revolutionary
days that “ he loved the King so well that he hoped never
to see another ” no longer had a double meaning.*
As long as the illness of George the Third lasted the
struggle between the two parties was a desperate one. On
the one side Fox contended that the Prince of Wales had
“ an inherent right to assume the reins of Government,”
while Pitt, who distrusted the heir-apparent utterly, used
aU his endeavours to make the Regency conditional. Stak-
ing everything upon the chance of the king’s recovery the
Prime Minister proposed to curb the authority of the Prince
by withholding his right to make peers and give places.
The motives of both protagonists were obvious. Fox, a
friend of the Prince, was eager for office ; Pitt, knowii^ that
he would be dismissed as soon as the Regent was appointed,
was firm in his allegiance to the invalid monarch. At last
when, after many weeks of stormy debate, the Regency
Bill had passe’d the House of Commons, 'the king began
to recover rapidly, and Wilkes wrote gleefully to his daughter
to tell her the good news.*
In the early stages of the great crisis, when H seemed
as if the Government was doomed. Lord Chancellor Thurlow
had been guilty of strange duplicity towards his colleagues.
Entering into negotiations with Fox he agreed to give bis
support to an unrestricted Regency, provided that be
should be allowed to retain the woolsack under the new
ministry. Later, when the reports of the king’s condition
were booming more hopeful, he deemed it wise to change
* LetUrt of Wilkes to his Daughter, ui. 234, 236, 230, 24*1 245>
252, 264, 269, 273, 288, 310, 327, 333 ; ef. The World, Jan. >, 3( 9i **’
1789.
* Records of My Life, J. Taylor, i. 114.
* History of England, W. E. H. Lecky, v. 96-147.
,7881 ‘THE END 385
his attitude. In a speech on the 15th of December he
warmly endorsed the policy of Pitt, and amazed the House
of Lords by bursting into a flood of tears. “ When I forget
my King,” he blubbered in a fulsome peroration, ‘‘^ay
my God forget me ! ”
“ God forget you,” muttered Wilkes, who was at his
cottage in the Isle of Wight when he heard of the outburst
of the treacherous Chancellor, “ He’ll see you damned
first ! ” >
Wilkes found many congenial neighbours in his island
home. Five miles to the south-west in the beautiful park of
Appuldurcomb dwelt a gentle connoisseur, named Sir Richard
Worsley, whose spacious mansion was filled with statues,
gems, and hassi-relievi, a wonderful museum of classic art.
Knighton House, a picturesque Elizabethan pile on Brading
Down, was the residence of George Maurice Bissett, happily
married now, but a few years previously the co-respondent
of a notorious divorce case in which his dilettante neighbour
was the petitioner. Sir Nash Grose, a judge of the King’s
Bench, was the owner of the Priory, and Sir William
Oglander lived at Nunwell, the seat of his family since the
Conquest. Neatrer than these were the Rev. Mr. Hewson,
incumbent of Shanklin, and Captain Field, the commander
of Sandown Fort. Everyone lavished hospitality upon
Wilkes, who was always giving dinner-parties himself at
the “ villakin." *
In the summer that he acquired his cottage by the sea
Wilk^ published an edition of the poems of Catidlus in a small
quarto volume, printed at the press of John Nichols, whom
he had recently appointed a Deputy of the Ward of Farring-
don Without. ‘The title-page ran as follows : “ Caius Valerius
' Life of William Pitt, Lord Stanhope, ii. ro; cf. Wilkes’s Diary,
Dec. 1788 : Notes and Queries, 8th series, xi. *70 ; William PiU and tie
^aiional Revival, J. Holland Rose, p. 420.
* The Isle of Wight, E. B. James, i. 449, 487-8. 598 ; Tour of the Isle of
J. Hassell, ii. 2, 7, 23, 29, 34,67, 73, 74: A Description the I Oe
Wight, H. C. Englefield, pp, 104-5 ! • Wilkes's Diary.
2 B
386 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [.788-90
Catullus. Recensuit Johannes WiM^es, Anglus. Londini,
1788. Typis Johannis Nichols.” The work had been
suggested by Count Revicsky, the Imperial Ambassador, a
collector of Editiones Principes, who frequently dined with
Wilkes in company with Henry Swinburne. Consisting
only of 103 copies, the impression was regarded both by its
printer and editor as perfectly immaculate — “ not a word
misspelt ; not a stop misplaced or omitted.” Modem
scholarship has scarcely endorsed this claim, clerical errors
of importance having been pointed out, while the text was
not chosen as the basis of subsequent editions. Among his
contemporaries, however, Wilkes gained much credit for
his labours, and the eminent persons to whom he presented
a copy were warm in their eulogies.*
Two years later the same publisher printed for him, as
a companion volume to the first work, an edition of the
Ethical Characters of Theophrastus, the first complete one
that had yet appeared. To the dismay of scholars both the
accents and the breathings were omitted, Wilkes retorting
airily to an objector ” that he would willingly be at the ex-
pense of printing a single copy (for him) with accents, if
he would be at the pains of finding a peason who would
first make and afterwards correct them.” Although the
typography was admirable, the performance found no
favour with the elect, it being obvious that Wilkes was
incompetent. " Pooh, pooh I ” sneered Person, the famous
Grecian, “ it is like its editor — of no character.” The most
noteworthy fact in connection with the book was a compli-
mentary letter from Lord Mansfield, expressing his gratitude
to his old enemy for sending him a copy.*
In June of this year Pitt dissolved Parliament and
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 218-25 I Literary Aneciates, J.
ix. 49-50, 466-7 : Genttenwn's Magasine, lx. 917 ; Morning Post, Aug. * 3 >
1788 ; Biographies of Wilkes and Cobbett, J. S. Watson, p. 106. _
• Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 226-38 ; Literary Anecdotes, J. Nid^i
ix. 68-9, 468; Gentleman's Magasine, lx. 1013; Wilkes»aitd Cebisit,
J. S. Watson, p. 106 ; Table Talk of 5 . Rogers (A. Pyce)i p. 35 *>
179°] THE END 387
appealed to the country. For some time the financial
policy of the Govermnent had been unpopular in the county
of Middlesex, the transference of the Tobacco Duty fronf the
Customs to the Excise being especially distasteful. Although
Wilkes presented a petition to the House of Commons
against the measure he did not vote for its rejection as his
constituents had ordered, incurring thereby the fierce
resentment of several important manufacturers. Forget-
ting all his claims upon their gratitude, a large body of
malcontents determined to defeat their old member, select-
ing George Byng, the son of the former candidate, to oppose
him.i With his usual adroitness Wilkes endeavoured to
evade the issue in his address to the freeholders, emphasizing
his long services of over twenty years and resuscitating the
ancient battle-cry of representative reform and shorter
Parliaments. Yet on the eve of the poll he did not scruple
to enrage the enemies of the “ Tobacco Act ” still further
by going down to Westminster to oppose Charles Fox, who
was their champion, ascending the hustings amidst a storm
of hisses and groans to plump for his ancient antagonist.
Parson Horne.® ,, .
The nomination of candidates for the county of Middlesex
took place at the Mermaid Tavern in Hackney on Fridayi
the 25th of June. So great was the crowd of freeholders
that the Sheriff adjourned the meeting from the large room
to the bowling green. Never before had Wilkes beheld
such a vast array of fiostile faces. Never before had the
old gefieral been unable to crush a mutiny. His address
was short and uninspired, merely a spiritless plea that he
had always faithfully discharged the trust they had imposed
ou him. No shouts of applause greeted the appearance of
‘ The World, March 20 and June 17, 17.90 : The Gatetteer, June 18,
*?’ 26, 1790 ; Representative History, T. H. B. Oldfield, iv. 180 ;
• Tife of Pitt, ix>rd Stanhope, ii. 32-3; Gentleman’s Magatine (1847),
1. p. 307.
Add. MS. 30,895, f, 92 : Life of Sheridan, Thomas Moore, ii. 120 ;
World, June i8, 1790,
388 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,750
the familiar red coat. The hoarse, inarticulate speech
ended amidst sullen silence. Immediately he had finished
the -solicitor of a society of tobacco manufacturers addressed
the meeting, charging Wilkes with having deserted the
House on the day when he was instructed by his constituents
to oppose the new taxes. It was an instance of the engineer
hoist with his own petard, for the old demagogue had
encouraged the constituencies in former days to regard
their representatives as merely delegates. In vain he
pleaded that “ out of eleven divisions against the Excise
he had voted in nine, once being absent through ill-health
and once owing to business.” The vast assembly of the
freeholders of Middlesex had lost faith in their old idol,
and when Wilkes was proposed as a fit and proper person
to represent them in Parliament a few hands only were
shown in his favour. Oddly enough, the exact number
was forty-five.^
Quite different was the reception of William Mainwaring’s
name, for he was sound on the tobacco question, and
hundreds of palms were held up on his behalf. Young
Byng, however, was the hero of the day, a J:empest of cheers
greeting his appearance on the platform, and it was plain
enough that his show of hands was by far the greatest.
Under the circumstances the Sheriff had no difficulty in
deciding upon whom the nomination had fallen. To the
surprise of his friends Wilkes refused to demand a poll,
perceiving that his chances were hopeless. ' In a few husky
words the old man announced that he would not ‘“disturb
the peace of the county by a contested election,” and then,
while the voters were cheering themselves hoarse at the
success of Byng and Mainwaring, he stole quietly atwy-
Though his heart was sore he betrayed no sign of emotion,
not even writing a farewell address, but contenting him-
‘ Th* World, July 8, 1790 ; Public Advertiser, Jane 35 and a6,
London Chronicle^ June 24 and 26, 1790; The CoMetteeff
26, and 29, 1790 ; Records of My Life, J. Taylor, i, till' Add. MS. 3®*
1790-9*1 THE ENO 5^9
self with a laconic advertisement merely thanking his
supporters for their attendance at the Mermaid Tavern.
To a few familiar friends sometimes he confessed his dis-
appointment. " I. should much have liked,” he usedT to
say, '* to have died in my gears.” *
Encouraged by the success of Mr. Byng, the dour John
Cowley made an attempt to eject Wilkes from the position
of Chamberlain at the next annual election. Of late the
old member for Middlesex had been causing grave dis-
satisfaction in the City, his persistency in remaining an
alderman although an official of the corporation giving
offence to many of the Livery, while a recent grant of £600,
said to be due to him for money that he had advanced,
was arousing much hostile criticism. The citizens of
London, however, had a deeper sense of gratitude than
the freeholders of the county. To the good-humoured
crowd that thronged Guildhall on Midsummer Day, it
seemed an act of meanness to deprive the old man of his
place. All knew that he was an upright and an assiduous
Chamberlain, by far the most illustrious that had ever
occupied the position. So the envious Cowley had but
“ a small show of hands,” and did not venture to challenge
a poll. No one was more delighted at the result than James
Boswell, who was present on the hustings. “ All Scotland,
niy dear sir, will rejoice at yoxur triumph ! ” he cried, as
he shook his old friend by the hand. To few men did the
whirligig of Time bring more ample revenges than to John
Wilkes.* *
©
At his first appearance as candidate for the Chamber-
lainship Wilkes had promised to devote one-third of his
salary (if he was elected) towards the liquidation of his
debts.* For many years after his appointment to the
* The Wofldy July 8, 1790 ; Th$ OaxeUeev^ July 6, 1790 ; Add. MS,
i, SexagenariaHt W. Beloe, ii. 9.
* Add. MSS. 30,895, ff. 95-8, xoo; Morning Post, Jan. 12, Feb* 19,
arch 4, June n, 14, and 27, July i, 1791.
Public Advertiser^ Feb. 21, 1776 ; Morning Post^ Dec* 23, 17791
390 LIFE OF JOHN WiLKES [,79,
lucrative ofi&ce all his surplus income was absorbed by his
old creditors, and nearly a decade had passed before he
was able to boast that " patience and economy were bring-
ing'their rewards.” ^ At the time of his discovery of Sand-
ham cottage a great improvement had taken place in his
financial position, and henceforth the flow of letters from
importunate dims finally ceased. When at last he was
free from debt he could regard himself as a rich man.
In addition to his own splendid salary Miss Wilkes now
possessed a large fortune inherited from her mother, said to
exceed £2000 a year.* Unhappily for those dependent
upon him, his extravagance kept pace with the increase of
his prosperity, for he was incapable temperamentally of
practising economy.
Dissatisfied with his old home in Prince’s Court, he was
anxious to possess " a complete town residence,” regarding
himself as “ fully equal ” to the expense of a larger establish-
ment. After some hesitation his choice fell upon No. 30
Grosvenor Square, a sunny house at the comer of South
Audley Street, where he took up his abode on the eve of his
contest with John Cowley.® Many costly alterations were
carried out, the owner’s tawdry and extravagant taste
being evident throughout the spacious mansion. To the
admiration of all her friends, Polly also took a share in the
decorations, painting all the front windows with oriental
designs, occup3dng four yedis over the laborious task.*
Wilkes showed the greatest pride in his new home, and
was able to give much larger entertainments. His ^nn»
parties, however, were usually small ones, it being
maxim that to be comfortable they ” should nevw consist
» Add. MS. 30873, f. 70.
* Morning Post, March 19, 1802 ; Miss Wilkes’s Will, vide Ltjt <7
Wilkes, J. Almon, v. 105-16. .
* The Squares of London, E. Beresford Chancellor, p. 28 ; London
and Present, H. B. Wheatley, iii. 164 ; Letters of Wilkes (0 his
iv. 64, 68 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, v. 87. No. 30 nntowe
No. 35.
* Rems, of H. Angelo (1904), i. 46 ; Morning Post, Jntit 13 »
THE END
1791]
391
of more than the number of the Muses, nor of less than that
of the Graces.” ^
Fortunately for Polly she possessed an excellent trustee
to prevent her from being infected by her father’s extra-
vagance — one Joseph Paice, a merchant living at No. 27
Bread Street Hill, acclaimed by the prince of British
essayists as " the finest gentleman of his time.” So habitual
was his chivalry that he would stand hat in hand while he
answered a poor servant girl who chanced to ask him the
way. Or, sometimes, he might be seen escorting a market
woman through a shower, holding his umbrella over her
basket of fruit lest it should be spoilt by the rain.® An
example of perfect altruism, he had distributed his fortune
among poor relations, merely retaining for himself enough
to live on. He had never married, owing to a love dis-
appointment in early youth, but, as though in compen-
sation for the lack of domestic ties, he was the guardian of
no less than a hundred wards, so widespread was the confi-
dence in his integrity. In dress he was the most prim
of old beaux, always wearing lace shirt-frill and ruffles,
with an embroidered waistcoat and gold knee-buckles, his
hair carefully {)owdered and tied in a queue. To this
estimable Mr. Paice the spendthrift Wilkes often proved a
sore anxiety, but he protected the interests of the daughter
with tact and firmness, while remaining on the best of
terms with her volatile father.®
From time to tipie there were rumours that Wilkes
would be rewarded for his services to the Government. At
first it was reported that he might be knighted, and then
an imaginative journalist announced that he would be
created a baronet.® No doubt the old man would have
* Literary Anecdotes, J. Nichols, fac. 477 *». i.
* Assays of Elia (A. Ainger, 1889), p. 115; English Merchanis, H. R.
Fox Bourne, ii. 240.
^ Family Pictures ^ Anne Manning, pp. 19-54 '• of Wilkes to his
(iughter^ iii, 33^ 3^^ 81, 184, 196, 207, 231, 279, iv. 207 ; Life of Wilkes,
J* Aimon, V. 94-5, 105, io6, n6 ; Wilkes’s Diary, passim^
Fhe World, Dec. 4, 1790 ; Morning Post, Aug. 5, 1791.
392 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1790-94
been gratified by either honour, but- having had no party
at his back in the City or in Parliament since his conversion
to Toryism, political exigencies never demanded his exal-
tatioii. Yet, it is doubtful whether imder any circumstances
a dignity could have been conferred on him. George the
Third had a sense of humour, and would have cmisidered
that he was making a very bad joke in creating such a title
as Sir John Wilkes.
No one was more deeply shocked by the horrors of the
French Revolution than the old demagogue. He declared
scornfully that the Government of France was not a demo-
cracy but “ a mob-ocracy.” * Whenever the subject was
mentioned he poured forth a torrent of abuse against the
republic. “ The late barbarities in France exceeded those
even of their own St. Barthelemy,” he wrote to his daughter
as early as July 1790. “ I scarcely think that the history
of manddnd can furnish scenes more truly horrid and comic
than in the neighbouring nation of monkeys and tigers, as
Voltaire calls the French,” he remarked two years later.
Although despising the folly and indolence of Louis XVI
he was full of sympathy for the poor queen. Marat he
loathed, exultiifg greatly when he fell beileath the knife
of Charlotte Corday. He was filled with delight whenever
misfortune overtook “ the bloody savages at Paris.” * It
never seems to have occuned to him that France was am-
mated by the same spirit of revolt that had swept over
England and America a generation before, and that the
revolution in both continents had been precipitated (if not
inspired) by the volcanic period of “ Wilkes and Liberty.”
From the seeds of the first great storm others had reaped
the tempest.^
By the irony of chance the last mob that Wilkes ever
saw, though composed entirely of his fellow-imperialists,
^ Diary of Madame D^Arblay (A. Dobson), iv. 340*
• LeUers of Wilkes to his Daughter, iv. 36, 60, 93, 96, 12% I 35 > * 4 *^
X 53 , 163.
• See pp, 243-5,
1794]
'the end 393
was the first to do him an injury. When the news of Lord
Howe’s great victory in the battle of Cape St. Vincent
reached London the town was illuminated, and crowds of
uproarious patriots thronged the streets until far intd the
night. At one period the demonstration became a riot,
a gang of “alarmists,” who favoured a sort of general
conscription, inciting the people to attack the houses of
unpopular politicians. Either by mistake or because he had
failed to support a scheme of national defence at a recent
meeting of the Common Council, a portion of the mob
selected Wilkes as a victim of their displeasure. A shower
of stones flew through the air, and in a few moments his
beautiful plate-glass windows, upon which his daughter
had laboured for so many years, lay in fragments upon the
carpet. Though he regretted his loss he bore it with much
good humour, refusing to prosecute any of the rioters.
“They are only,” he said with a smile, “some of my old
pupils, now set up for themselves.” ^
One of the penalties of his new prosperity was a shoal
of begging letters. All through life it was his fate to be
associated with many who eventually became bankrupt.
Yet he seldom Hbestowed much charity upon these unfor-
timates, partly because his own extravagant habits left him
with little margin, and partly because most of the lame
ducks were beyond salvation.* Some of his old allies,
however, found him a generous friend, like Sam Petrie of
Tokenhouse Yard, one of his most stalwart supporters in
the City, who was obliged to flee the country to avoid im-
prisonment for debt. By his own relatives, too, he was
greatly harassed. The peripatetic Israd met with no
success in the West Indies, returning to England and then
‘ Rtms. of H. Angelo (1904), i. 46 ; Mornmg Post, April 19, June 13
and 24, 1794 ; jgff Magazine, iv. 156.
‘ In 1763 Churchill had apostrophised him thus :
"... Nature gave thee, open to distress,
A heart to pity, and a hand to bless.”
— The Prophecy of Famine.
394 life of JOHN WILKES 1,794
emigrating to New York, looking alwa3rs to brother John
to settle his financial difficulties. The incompetent Heaton
was usually insolvent, the coal business proving as un-
rem&nerative as the family distillery, and the house at
Prince’s Court, whither he had removed in 1791, being too
expensive an establishment. Various nephews, also, seemed
as much in need of pecuniary assistance as their parents,
while, owing to the parsimony of the eccentric Mrs. Hayley,
the favourite niece was often living in comparative poverty
Jack Smith, after a disastrous start, was now doing well
in the service of the East India Company. In Germany
he had been alwa3rs in debt, and finding that his father
could not afford to put him into a Prussian regiment he was
obliged to accept a clerkship in an office in Hamburg. Soon
perceiving that he had no taste for business, Wilkes recalled
him to London, when to his dismay he found that he was
as much like a German in manner and appearance as he had
been like a French boy on his return from Paris. Nominated
to a cadetship in the Bengal Cavalry, the young man sailed
to India in 1782, where, although he had to wait eighteen
years for a captaincy, he was always happy and contented.
Whenever possible Wilkes gave him lettersi*of introduction
to his superior officers.*
Ever since he had been Chamberlain the old man
had employed his leisure moments in writing the history
of his -life. “ It will be published," he used to tell his
friends, “ after my ascension.” » To a chosen few he used
to read sometimes portions of these memoirs, the auditors
being always most eulogistic. Imitating the candour of
Rousseau, without his neurotic introspection, he endeavoured
* Add. MSS. 30,873-5, passim ; Memoirs of Latitia Hawkins^ ii* 5 »
Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter^ iv. 84.
» War Office Records; Add. MSS. 30.872, ft, 116, 181, 202, 203,
276 ; 30.873, ff. 38, 78, 134 ; 30.874. *< 47. 77 ! Metiers of Wilhts to «
Daughter, iii. 267 ; Life of Wilkes, J, Almon, v. 117-39 \ History oj
Isle of Wight, W. H. D. Adams, p. 203 ; Records of My Life^ J. Taylor,
i. III.
• Table Toth of S. Rogers (A. Dyce), p. 236 ; Add. MS. 35^*567* ** ^ 33 *
1794-96] THE END 395
to tell the true story of John Wilkes, taking an obvious
pleasure in his confessions. Since he had a sense of style
and the gift of portraiture, and was also the most audacious
of humourists, he should have written the greatest'^uto-
biography that the world has ever seen, for it was the nar-
rative of a most amazing life by one who did not shrink
from self-revelation. Unhappily, only a small portion has
been preserved. Although often florid and affected, it
contains numerous graceful passages with some shrewd
comments upon men and affairs, while the personality of
(iertrude Corradini stands forth as clearly in its pages as
any of the characters of Jean Jacques.^
In these later years a visit to Sandham Cottage became
a fashionable pilgrimage, all those who made the tour of the
Isle of Wight being anxious to see the “ villakin ” and its
famous tenant. Like Voltaire at Femey, he loved to have
a little court of admirers around him. In all his references
to the past there was not the least suspicion of rancour, it
being his habit to refer to his own career as if he was speak-
ing of another man. “ Now, I’ll tell you a story of what
happened in the late John Wilkes’s time,” was the usual
preface to some humorous reminiscence. ‘Yet he never
forgot that he had passed through a hard struggle. Once
a guest happened to ask how he would like to go through
his political life again.
“ Not at all,” he replied. “ Adversity may be a good
thing to breakfast on; nay, a man may dine upon it; but
•
^ Two volumes of these memoirs are preserved in the Brit. Mus. (Add.
Mss. 30,865). They were privately printed by W. F. Taylor in 1888
(Harrow, i6mo), under the title of John Wilkes, Patriot: An Unfinished
^utohioqraphy. See p. 164, ante. Tradition says that the rest of the manu-
script was destroyed by Miss Wilkes after her father’s death. Vide
Records of My Life, J. Taylor, i. iio-ii ; Literary Anecdotes, J. Nichols,
479 , 480 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, i. 183, ii. 200 ; The Isle
^Vightf E. B. James, ii, 546 ; The Percy Anecdotes, R. and S. Percy,
88 ; The World, Oct. 8 and 29, Nov. 26, 1787 ; Morning Post, June 27,
*788; 2 'he Oracle, Jan. 3, 1798; Gentleman's Magazine (1802), Part I,
P- 467 .
396 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [1794-96
believe me, my good friend, it makes a confoundedly bad
supper.” ^
To the last he was fond of deprecating his personal
appearance. One of his favourite anecdotes was of a certain
lottery office-keeper, who offered him ten guineas not to
pass his window while the tickets were being drawn, in-
timating that his evil eye might bring bad luck upon the
house.^
“ But I did not make myself,” he used to remark, “and,
being only tenant for life I am not liable for what the lawyers
call permissive waste.” ®
Often in jest he loved to reiterate that he had always
been a favourite with women notwithstanding his ugliness,
repeating the familiar phrase : “ It only takes me half an
hour to talk away my face.”
On market day in the summer time he was frequently
to be seen in Newport, walking arm in arm with a faithful
friend named William Sharpe, who, like John Dell in former
years, was always willing to fetch and carry for him ; or
standing in the porch of the old Bugle Inn to watch the
crowd pass by, casting an appreciative glance upon aU the
pretty farmers’ -daughters, who were famous far and wide
for their beauty.^
The flight of time did not seem to diminish his “ luxu-
rious imagination ” in the least degree, and when seventy
years of age the old pagan was engaged in a new amour
with “ a juvenile Dulcinea.” The name of the girl was
Sally Barry, and her home was in Dean Street, where
for the space of two years Wilkes continued to visit her
periodically. As late as September 1795 a journalist
referred to the liaison. “Alderman Wilkes is finishiH
his Essay on Woman in the neighbourhood of Soho ; hut
^ European Magazine^ xxxiii. 227, 229.
* Life of F, Reynolds^ ii. 106 ; Century of Anecdote ^ J. Timbs, i. iW*
* Rems, of H. Angelo (1904), i. 407 n,
* Life of F. Reynolds^ ii. io6 ; The Oracle, Aug. 19, 1797-
, 794 - 96 ] THE END 397
it is a weak and miserable performance.” * All the while,
nevertheless, he remained devoted to the placid Mrs. Arnold,
visiting Kensington Gore at least once a week, always
behaving to her with kindness and consideration. And to
his little Harriet, who was now a delightful playmate, he
was the best of fathers.
“Nothing is so fatiguing as the life of a wit,” Mrs.
Thrale used to say. “ Garrick and Wilkes are the two oldest
men of their ages I know, for they have both worn them-
selves out by being eternally on the rack to give entertain-
ment to others.” * Still, in spite of his bent figure and
wrinkled face, the old patriot was blessed with tissue of
steel, unimpaired as yet by the struggles and dissipations of
his turbulent life. Although it may have seemed as if
old age had come upon him prematurely years ago, his
health continued to be excellent, and he was able to take
his daily walk to and from the Guildhall until the end of
his days. Riding, of which he was alwa5?s so fond, he had
given up some years before, as well as bathing in the sea.
Much to his sorrow, Polly was often ailing at this period,
being troubled with a delicate throat, and sometimes losing
her voice for several weeks.®
Until late in life he still retained much of his old fasci-
nation for the common folk, who remembered with gratitude
how he had fought against their oppressors. One hot day
in summer he was standing in the street with Henry Swin-
burne, mopping his .brow as he talked, when a drummer
and his son walked past.
“ What a queer-looking bald fellow that was,” whispered
the boy.
“ Don’t you know him ? ” replied the father. “ ’Tis
* Wilkes’s Diary for 1794-5, vide Add. MS. 30,866 ; Bon Ton Maga-
«»«, V. 275-6 ; cf. Add. MS. 32.566, f. 153, for an anecdote related by
Mitford.
* Diary of Madame D*Afblay (A. Dobson), ii. 57.
® Letteys of Wilkes to his Daughter ^ iv. 43, 75, 86, 88, n8 ; cf. Morning
March 13, 1802,
398 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES [,796-97
Johnny Wilkes; and that bald head has more brains in it
than all our regiments put together, drummers and all ! ” 1
In spite, too, of the existence of Amelia Arnold his social
position was higher during the last dozen years of his life
than it had been at any other period. Since he had become
a royal favourite the doors of the great hostesses were no
longer closed to him. The fastidious Mrs. Montagu insisted
that he should be among the first to visit her wonderful
new house.* Even the pious Hannah More allowed that
he “was very entertaining.”® With most of his old
enemies he was now at peace, James Townsend, the most
violent of all, being reconciled to him while they were the
guests of Lord Shelburne for a few days at Bowood Park.
But for the untimely death of the vindictive Oliver there
is little doubt that Wilkes would have made him a friend
long ago.
Of his little home in the Isle of Wight the old man
never seemed to tire, spending every summer there from
the year 1788 till the year 1797, On one of the last occa-
sions that he crossed the Solent the wind failed, and he
complained of the length of the passage, which occupied
three hours. “Nothing has been so ol&ioxious to me
through life,” he grumbled, “as a dead calm.”® Never-
theless, he returned on the same date in the following year,
staying until the 27th of August. On the way back to
London, with Miss Wilkes as his companion, he visited
Arundel, Petworth, and Cobham. ,
While he was apparently in good health his friends,
perceiving how much thinner he had grown, began to feM
that he was attacked by a marasmus.® Although able still
' Courts of Europe, H. Swinburne, i. 398.
* Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, iv. io8, 119 ; Morning Post, May
1791.
* Life and Correspondence of Hannah More, ii. 109.
« The Isle of Wight, E. B. James, ii. 547 ; c/. Wilkes's Diary, Jw
1796, vide Add. MS. 30,866. The passage from Portsmouth to Ryde seems
usually to have taken from forty-five minutes to an hour and a half*
® Annual Register (1797), p. 377.
THE END
i;97]
399
to walk to his office he had lost much of his energy in
recent months, and went to dinner-parties less frequently.
In mind he was as active as ever, enjoying life to the full,
but quite aware that it was drawing to a close. Oft his
seventieth birthday he had remarked that in reality he
was entering into his 141$^ year, “ for,” said he, “ I have
alwa57s lived two da3rs in one.”* No gloomy thoughts
disturbed his cheery optimism.
On the 28th of November it was his duty as Chamberlain
of London to deliver the usual address when the Freedom
of the City was presented to Sir Horatio Nelson for his
great victory at the battle of Cape St. Vincent in the pre-
ceding February. It was an impressive scene, though the
onlookers scarcely can have realised its full significance.
The old demagogue, bowed and shrunken, upon whom the
shadow of death was resting, had influenced the spirit of
his age more deeply than any other living man. The
gallant sailor, with his sightless eye, and the empty sleeve
pinned across his breast, was destined to live in history as
one of the most glorious of the nation’s heroes.*
Seven days later, on the 5th of December, there was a
similar ceremony, the recipient of the honour on this oc-
casion being Admiral Waldegrave. The Chamberlain’s
speech was shorter than usual, like that in which he had
addressed Nelson a week previously, for his voice was no
longer capable of a sustained effort. But there was no
sign of mental lassitude, and despite his cadaverous aspect
no sooner had the old man spoken the preliminary words,
“I give you joy,” than it was evident that he was still
full of life and spirit.®
But it was his last appearance at a public function, A
few days later he was confined to his room with a chill.
I Literary Anecdotes, J. Nichols, fat. 476 n, 1.
P ttM Wilkes, J. Almon, iv, aia ; GenUeman’s Magasitu (1797),
t*^**”*”"* MajMijw (1798), Part I, p, 73; European Magasint,
400 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES f,797
and soon he was not well enough to leave his bed. It was
evident that he could not rally, his vitality having been
undermined at length by the ravages of senile decay.
Although he knew that his da57s were numbered he had no
fear of death, observing that it was “ one of the conditions
of human nature, which mankind must generally submit
to at the age of threescore years and ten.” * From the
first he was cheerful and resigned, acquiescing without
complaint in the inevitable. Impenitent as ever, he loved
to crack a ribald joke with his medical attendant.*
Though his strength had gone his mind was undimmed,
and he was conscious of all aroimd him. To the servants
who waited in the sick-room he was always most grateful,
thanking them repeatedly for their care and attention,
Occasionally, in his hoarse quavering voice, he would
declaim some passages from the last dialogue of Mathias's
Pursuits of Literature, of which he was a great admirer.*
Lying free from pain, he was able to read or to be read to,
Yet, there was no need of books to while away the hours,
for the memories of the past were of far more interest than
any other story. Wonderful pictures must have flashed
through his brain as he lay dowly sinking to his death,
those great historical scenes in which he himself had pljiyei
the chief role. Wonderful faces must have seemed to look
down upon him, dead heroes who had been his friends or
his .enemies, and beautiful women whom he had loved !
forsaken.
There was one face upon which* his eyes could^ always
rest. His devoted Polly never left his bedside, ever on
the watch to anticipate his slightest wish, unwilling to kw
a single moment of his companionship. Sick at baadi
but with smiling lips, she sat patiently by his couch*
taining with undaunted courage herimequal contest agaias*
' European Magazine^ xxxiii. 229.
* Add. MS. 32,568, 1 . 24.
* European Magazine^ xxxiii. 90, 165, 229*
1797]
THE END
4pi
death. Once more they spent Christmas Day together, for
he lingered until the following evening, conscious to the last.
Late in the afternoon of Tuesday, the 26th of December,
he asked Polly to give him something to drink. Taking
the cup in his hands he looked towards her with his old
habit of gallantry, and murmured loud enough for her to
hear that he drank to the health of his “beloved and
excellent daughter.” A little later he passed away calmly
and without pain.
So died John Wilkes at the age of seventy-two.
Although he had outlived the majority of his con-
temporaries, and had been seen in public so seldom during
recent years, his death created no little stir in the world.
Long obituary notices appeared in the newspapers and
magazines, many of them giving a full biographical ac-
count of his career. In recent times the public prints had
never paid so much attention to the decease of any other
celebrity.'
At first, it was believed that the Chamberlain had left
a considerable sum of money. In his will, which was
signed less than three years previously, he had presumed
apparently that^e was worth at least £ 40 ^ 0 . With kind
forethought he had bequeathed small legacies to the clerks
in his office, as well as to his servants, besides leaving the
sums of £1000 and £2000 respectively to Mrs. Arnold and his
daughter Harriet. Yet, to the surprise of his executors,
it was found that he was insolvent, having lived in his usual
careless fashion to the full extent of his income until the
last. Still, his humble beneficiaries were not allowed to
* Life of Wilkes, ]. Alinon,v.88: Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, L 127;
London Chronicle, Dec. 26-8, 1797 ; True Briton, Dec. 30, 1797, Jan. 26,
1798: Tims, Dec. 27: Morning Chronicle, Dec. 29; General Evening
Post, Dec. 29 ; Morning Herald, Dec. 30, 1797 ; The Oracle, Jan. i, 2, 3,
1798 ; Annual Register (1797), pp. 58, 369 ; Scots Magatine, lx. 75, 153 ;
European Magaeine, xxxiii. 17, 83, 163, 223 ; Gentleman's Magatine (1797) ;
P- 1077, (1798) pp. 77, 124 : Monthly Mirror (1798). P> 641 Lady's Magatine
(*798), pp. 45, 48, 93.
402 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
be disappointed, the inestimable Polly making up the
deficiency out of her own fortune.^
The body of Wilkes was laid to rest in a vault in Grosvenoi
Chapel, South Audley Street, on the 4th January, according
to the instructions of his will, which ordered that he should
be buried in the parish where he died. Since he had ex-
pressed a desire that the ceremony should take place “in
great privacy,” the hearse was followed by only three
mourning coaches in addition to Miss Wilkes’s private
carriage. Besides a few relations like Heaton Wilkes and
Robert Baker none but the most intimate friends, such as
John Nichols and Joseph Paice, were invited to the funeral.
The body was carried from the door of the chapel to the
grave by eight poor workmen, who each received a guinea
as well as a new suit of black clothes. A plain marble
tablet marks his tomb at the east end of the north gallery,
with the appropriate inscription, written by himself : Near
THIS PLACE ARE INTERRED THE REMAINS OF JOHN WiLKES.
A Friend of Liberty.*
‘ Life of J. Wilkes^ J. Almon, v. 90-5, 105-16.
• Life of J. Wilkes J J. Almon, v. 88 ; Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter,
i. 127 ; Registers ^of St. George's, Hanover Square ; London Past and
Present^ H. B. Wheatley, i. 80. The coffin plate iS said to have been
engraved with his arms : “ Or, a chevron Sable between three crows’
heads erased, coloured proper ; charged with an escutcheon of pretence,
Sable, a chevron Or, between three pelicans vulnerating Or. Crest on a
mount Vert, a cross-bow stringed Or ; with the motto on a scroll, Arcut
meo non confido .’ ’ Gentleman's Magazine ( 1 798) , p. 81 . There is no record,
however, at Herald’s College to show that Wilkes was entitled to bear
arms. ^ «
CHAPTER XXII
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY
I
T he posthumous fame of few public men has been
influenced more adversely by political prejudice
than that of John Wilkes. It was natural that
it should be so. At one time or another in his
turbulent career he was the hUe noire of both Whig and
Tory, each party in turn havmg a grievance against him.
In both cases, as always, it was not his services but his
offences that were remembered. For this reason, strange
though it may seem, he is perhaps the only great English
politician who left no faithful adherents to take care of his
reputation.
The political Hegira of 1784, when he crowed over to the
Government benches, did not arouse the least gratitude
among the Tories. A burst of hilarity followed this
strangest of vicissitudes, but there was no cause for jubila-
tion. An “ exhausted volcano ” already, he brou^t no
strength to his new p^y. Not a single colleague came with
him, a«d he was of no use in debate. During his allegiance
to Pitt he did not deliver one serviceable speech on behalf
of the administration, while he failed to kwp his seat im-
mediately he was called upon to defend it. Thus, the Tory
'*^ters, having no reason to be proud of his adherence,
devote their attention to his performances as a demagogue,
consequently saying little that is favourable of his career.
From Adolphus to John Selby Watson the Conservative
^torians have taken a low estimate of Wilkes’s char-
404 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
acter, denying that he possessed dther honesty or great
abilities.^
Among the Whigs there was even less respect for his
memory. Although aware that he had saved the party
from extinction by creating an auxiliary force from the
ranks of Radicalism, they could not forget that he had
always been left outside the pale by their leaders, who re-
garded him with jealousy and suspicion. A still worse
blot darkened his political fame. The impardonable sin
of the renegade lay at his door, and he was never forgiven
for going over to the enemy at one of the most critical
periods in the history of Whiggism. Every statesman who
changes sides has endured similar odium. All others, how-
ever, except Wilkes, have found capable apologists among
the members of their new party.
One of the first of his detractors was a great Whig Lord
Chancellor, whose own career, oddly enough, exhibits many
of the defects that he imputed to the member for Middlesex.
In order to enhance the reputation of other Whig statesmen
it was convenient to depreciate the fame of Wilkes, so Lord
Brougham endeavoured to prove that he was a thorough
hypocrite, who “ always pandered to th/ appetites of the
mob.” Yet to the modem reader the criticism as a whole
will seem ineffective. To declare that “ he had spent all
his fortune before he gained popular favour ” is a wild
exaggeration, and the taunt that he “ lived for years like ®
mendicant on patriotic subscriptions ” is applicable also
to every popular politician whose income has been provided
by enthusiastic admirers. It is curious, too, that the writer;
who was one of the ugliest men of his time, should s|)eak
maliciously of another’s “inhuman squint and denxwb*^
grin.” To suggest, moreover, that “ strict moral conduct,
regular religious habits, and temperate, prudent bdiavioor
* History of England, John Adolphus, i. i22-4r, S 38 * 3 a»
484-97: «• lo-n. *03, *5*-4. 31*: lit- *40-8: Biopaphin 4.^.
and Cobbett, J. S. Watson, pp. 108-14. “
THE VERTDICT OF POSTERITY 405
were qualities that were “ generally required of public men ”
in the middle of the eighteenth century indicated an im-
perfect acquaintance with the manners and customs of the
period. Apparently the object of Brougham’s tfatribe
was to emphasize the orthodox Whig tradition with regard
to the character and accomplishments of John Wilkes.^
The cry was taken up by the great Whig Prime Minister,
Lord John Russell, whose verdict against the demagogue
was equally severe. “ A profligate spendthrift,” he dubbed
him, “ without opinions or principles, religious or political ;
whose impudence far exceeded his talents, and who always
meant licence when he cried liberty.”® Thus, within fifty
years of Wilkes’s death, he had been repudiated most
emphatically in the name of Whiggism by two of the most
illustrious of Whig statesmen.
Macaulay, writing at this period, did not join in the
chorus of disapproval, since he was “ dusting the jacket ”
of George Grenville, but his references to the member for
Aylesbury are invariably patronising and cavalier. “ One
of the most profane, licentious, and agreeable rakes,”
he calls him, “the delight of green-rooms and taverns.”
Little but what»is trivial and superfluous i? told of the man,
and the great essayist ignored the fact that he was describing
one of the most important constitutional developments in
the history of England.*
Later writers on the Whig side have been more generous
in their acknowledgment of Wilkes’s services, but they
s^dpm speak of him without contempt, and none of them
form a high opinion of his abilities. While admitting that
“ there is no historical name which is identified with pre-
cedents of such singular importance,” Thorold Rogers
obviously mfers that the man was a charlatan, protesting
^ Historical Sketches of Statesnun of the Timt of Georgt in, Henry, Lord
Brougham, 3rd series, pp. 181-93.
* The Bedford Correspondence, in. lii.
• Critical and Historical Essays, Lord Maca u lay, vide Essay on the
Earl of Chatham.
406 LIFE OF JOHN WlLKES
that “he was always in the market.” » John Richard
Green and Franck Bright, two of the most widely read of
modem historians, have adopted a similar attitude, the
former^ calling Wilkes “a worthless profligate,” while the
latter denounces him as “a scurrilous writer of most
licentious morals.”® Obviously the old Whig tradition,
fostered by Brougham and Lord John Russell, has prevented
many earnest inquirers from doing justice to one of the
most conspicuous characters of the eighteenth century.
Meanwhile the inevitable reaction had taken place.
Soon after the Whig magnates had spoken Charles Went-
worth Dilke wrote an eloquent apology for Wilkes, attempt-
ing even the impossible task of extenuating his share in the
“ Essay on Woman,” but doing a good work by showing the
futility and ingratitude of tr5dng to blacken the character
of a man who had performed a great constitutional service.®
Not long afterwards a judicious essay by Fraser Rae gave
the first adequate account of the demagogue’s career,
proving his claim to permanent recognition.® A little later,
the most scholarly by far, as well as the most attractive of
all the descriptions of the life of the patriot, was contained in
Sir George Trevelyan’s Early History of Charles James Fox,
which took for its text the words of Gladstone that the name
of Wilkes must be enrolled among the great champions of
English freedom.® Finally, a complete biography in two
volumes, written with much care and elaboration of detail,
was published by Mr. Percy Fitzgerald.®
To a large extent these latter works are devoted tdtbe
task of rehabilitating the personal character of Wilk®
and justif5dng his political attitude. No sincere attempt
1 Historical Gleanings, J. E. Thorold Rogers, pp. 179, 183.
* History of the English People, John Richard Green, iv. 220 ; A nW'
tory of England, J. Franck Bright, iii. X043.
* Papers of a Critic, C. W. Dilke, ii. 229-79.
* Wilkes, Sheridan, Fox, W. F. ]^e, pp. 1-139.
® Early History of Charles James Fox, G. O. Trevdyan, pp*
* The Life and Times of John Wilkes, M,P., Percy FitagewiWt
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 407
is made to determine his position in history. Trevelyan,
indeed, deems him “ far from great,” and even Dilke speaks
of his “ dead and forgotten reputation ” In the opinion
of the present writer the narrative that has been sft forth
in the.se pages demonstrates beyond aU question that the
hero of so many doughty deeds has an indisputable claim
to eminence ; or, as a natural corollary, that “ a great
champion of English freedom” must have been a great
man.
11
“The Spirit of the Age is the very thing that a great man
changes.”
“ But does he not rather avail himself of it ?” inquired Coningsby.
“Parvenus do,” rejoined his companion, “but not prophets, great
legislators, great conquerors. They destroy and they create.” ^
Upon this test of greatness, enunciated by a great
statesman, Wilkes’s title is secure. Probably no other of
his contemporaries influenced more powerfully the Spirit
of the Age. Alone and unbidden, he raised the standard
of revolt agait^t arbitrary power in his ,pwn land. The
inspiration of his example, passing across the Atlantic,
helped to precipitate the War of Independence, returning
later as a fiercer spirit still to provoke the cataclysm of the
French Revolution.*
The axiom of Disraeli— which is the axiom also of an
hktorical school of* hero-worshippers, who imagine that
some great conqueror or some great legislator must ride
in the whirlwind and direct the storm of all great events
in history— is opposed to the theories of a school of historic
fatalists, who regard every phenomenon in the life of nations
as the result of an inevitable law of chance. There is no
^ Coningsby, B. DisraeU, Book HI, ch. i.
• The files of the principal American newspapers in 1764, and again
•n 1768-9 show how deqily the Colonists were impressed by the " Case
of Mr. Wilkes." Cf. Lettors of WUkts to his Daughter, i. 107,
4o8 life of JOHN WILKES
reason why the disciples of this latter creed should deny
that Wilkes was a great man. Even though he was but
one of the natural products of the Spirit of the Age, the
mere figurehead of the ship of progress, borne along by
an irresistible tide, it was his banner that was the outward
and visible sign of a great social revolt, and under his
standard there was always victory.
His achievements were indeed stupendous. In his
successful agitation against the principle of a General
Warrant, he vindicated for all time the great clause in
Magna Charta which enacted that “ No free man shall be
taken or imprisoned, or outlawed, or exiled, or anyways
destroyed ; nor will we go upon him, nor will we send
upon him, unless by the lawful judgment of his peers or by
the law of the land.”* Although imprisomnent without
trial could not have become common, the judicial system
being placed on too firm a basis, such imprisonment was
now made impossible, the decision of the Court of King’s
Bench upholding the contention of Wilkes.* More than this,
with the exception of a brief period when the fear of
Jacobinism seemed to call for stern methods of repression,
there was no i^ore persecution for politi(Sil offences after
a General Warrant was declared illegal. It was the proud
privilege of John Wilkes to preserve one of the most
essential principles of English liberty.
In'his long struggle to efface the resolution of the House
of Commons on the 17th of February, 5769, he won an even
greater triumph. In this respect one of the ordinanoeSrff
the Bill of Rights seemed at stake— the declaration “ tk8,t
the election of members of Parlyament ought to be free.
Once and for all he vindicated the right of the people to sderi
their own Parliamentary representatives, and frcp ^
time onward the House of Commons has never atteinpte*^
1 Select Charters y William Stubbs, p, 301, c. 39. -
® Life of Lord Mansfieldy J. Holliday, pp. i4X-a;
{1765), p. 535. , ■ ' ’
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 409
to dictate to a constituency in regard to its dioice. Not
only is the result of the Middlesex Election a great con-
stitutional landmark, in that it saved the electors from
all danger of being told “ whom they should choos* **” but
it emphasized the principle, perhaps for the first time, that
the sovereign power was vested not in Parliament, but in
the “ great public.” ^ Moreover, growing out of the national
protest against the t5n:anny of the Lower House there arose
a definite desire for a more popular representation, a desire
that Wilkes was one of the earliest to kindle and the most
diligent to keep aflame. It is diflicult to exaggerate the
influence of the Middlesex election upon public opinion ;
it is difficult to exaggerate the services of its hero to the
cause of constitutional reform.
Unquestionably no one did more also to obtain the
freedom of the Press. In the pages of the North Briton he
printed the full name of every person whom he mentioned,
declining to conceal their identity as usual under an initial.
In “ No. 45 ” he asserted his right to criticise the King’s
Speech, while he never ceased to protest against the law of
libel, under which the booksellers “ hved always in a state of
jeopardy, like soldiers fighting for their country.” It was
owing to the great indignation caused by his conviction for
reprinting his paper that one of the greatest changes affect-
ing the Newspaper Press was made in the Statute Book.
Hitherto, as Lord Mansfield maintained in the year 1771, a
jury had not the right to decide whether the publication
\S&s,libellous, but only whether it had been published. To
the nation at large this judgment was never acceptable,
and twenty-one years later Fox was able to pass a new Libel
Act, which placed the liberty of the Press under the pro-
tection of the jury by allowing them to determine what
constitutes a libel. Equally important was the concession
* Historical GleaniHgs, J. E, Tbotold Rogers, p. 183 ; Law of the Con-
^Uution, A. V. Dicey, pp. 31-4, jSs ; Constitutional History of Ersgland,
T. Erskine May, ii. a6.
410 LIFE OF JOHN WiLKES
of the right of reporting the debates in Parliament, a reform
that has increased the power of the newspapers in an im-
measurable degree, helping to change entirely the relation-
ship between the electorate and its representatives, and this
reform, as already explained, was brought about principally
by the courage and dexterity of John Wilkes.^ The man
who was able to vindicate two of the most vital clauses of
the Great Charter and the Bill of Rights, besides striking
off the fetters that impeded the Freedom of the Press, well
deserves the title of the “ Friend of Liberty.”
In addition to these three great deeds, Wilkes did more
than any other politician of his time to prevent George the
Third from becoming an absolute monarch. Without his
opposition it is probable that the king would have over-
thrown “ the principles of the Revolution ” still more
effectually, and made himself even more independent of
parliamentary restraint. Not only did Wilkes make a
personal protest against the new policy, but he created a
party to oppose it, and helped to make that party the
formidable force it became by managing it on a splendid
system of organisation.* If we are to judge a man by his
fruits he is entitled to rank among the m«st illustrious of
the period.
Ill
In the hey-day of his career his opinions were half a
century in advance of his time, and hd was the pione^^
some of the most important measures that were reaSsed
in the reign of Queen Victoria. As it has been pointed out
^ The Genesis of Parliamentary Reform, G. S. Veitch, pp. 2S-6‘,
History of C. J. Fox, Sir G. O. Trevelyan, pp. 334, 357-9 ;
History of England, T. Erskine May, ii. 39-49 ; English Const^s^^*^
History, T. P. Taswell-Langmead, pp. 771-4 ; History of England, W* "
H. Lecky, iii. 256-66 ; Law and Custom of the Constitution, Sir W« ,J*<
Anson (fourth edition), i. 164. : .
» History of England, W. E. H. Lecky, iii. 174-9 : Europtan
xxxiii. 228. ' 'V .
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 411
previously, he was the first prominent politician to propose
a bill for “ a just and equal representation of the people of
England in Parliament,” and no doubt one of the reasons
that he was able to follow the leadership of the y#unger
Pitt was because that minister was in favour of a compre-
hensive scheme of reform.^ In his last election address to
the freeholders of Middlesex in the year 1790 he still advo-
cated an extension of the franchise and a redistribution of
seats.®
It is curious also to note that he was one of the earliest
advocates of Free Trade. During the year 1772 he was
the chairman of a committee appointed by the Common
Council “ to consider the most effectual means of lowering,
or at all events of preventing an increase in, the price of
com.” In his report on the 19th of November he boldly
recommended “ the free importation of grain.” ® Such a
declaration was quite consistent with his principles, for during
his Mayoralty he made many endeavours to lower the price
of provisions. It was appropriate that he should approve
of the doctrines of Adam Smith, since the great economist,
although a Scotsman, was a warm admirer of “ Wilkes and
Liberty.” * » •
Tme to his liberal principles, he was one of the first
public men to suggest a reform of the criminal code, re-
garding it as unnecessarily cruel. In an address to the
Livery of London, which he issued on the 28th of September,
1772, at the close of his Shrievalty, in conjunction with
A^Jppnan Bull, he inveighed eloquently against the whole-
sale executions. “We submit to you,” ran the address,
“ whether it would not be expedient for you to instruct
the representatives in Parliament of this city to move for
a revision of those laws which inflict capital pimishment
* Genesis of Parliamentary Reform, G. S. Veitch, p. 44 ; Gentleman’s
MagoHne (1776), p. 140.
* Add. MS. 30,895, f. 92.
* PiMic Advertiser, Nov. 20, 177*. ■*
of Adam Smith, John Rae, p. 163.
412 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
for many inferior crimes, where mercy too seldom heals the
rigour of justice. ... It was our care, while we paid a
due obedience to the laws now in force, to alleviate thdr
harshapss by lenity and tenderness to every unhappy
object.” ^
Oddly enough the man who was destined to abolish
many of these blood-stained laws believed that the member
for Middlesex wished to retain them. It was at a dinner
party thirteen years after Wilkes had been Sheriff that Sir
Samuel Romilly formed this impression while listening to
a spirited altercation between the ex-patriot and Count
Mirabeau. The arguments of the Englishman, like those
of Dr. Johnson on so many occasions, obviously were
inspired by the spirit of contradiction, shaped in paradox
for the purpose of exasperating his arrogant opponent, who
quickly lost his temper. Wilkes appears to have used the
extravagant argument that as the spectacle of capital
punishment tended to make the spectators both brave and
humane it was better that the severities of the criminal
law should continue ! * Yet there is no doubt that bis
real sentiments were contained in the public address which
he wrote as Sheriff, and that he was talking nonsense on this
last occasion for the pleasure of hearing the Frenchman’s
reply.
Had Wilkes been bom fifty years later his liberal ideas
must.have given him an important place in the Government
of his country. Or, if the great Reform Bill had been
passed half a century earlier, it is certain that he would^l^*
taken a high position among the statesmen of his time
spite of his show of insincerity and lack of skill in debate.
No general can win a decisive battle whose soldiers do not
possess weapons as effective as those of the enemy, and die
majority of Wilkes’s troops were not armed with the vote.
‘ Public Advertiser t Sept. 28, 1772, Lam
• Memoirs of Sir Samuel Romilly, 61 ; cf. Mirabeau's
his Residence in England (London, 1832), i. 90*
THE verdict of POSTERITY 413
IV
It is the veriest truism that a man may be grea*, as in
the case of Napoleon, although he is immoral. It appears
to have been the custom, however, to regard Wilkes as an
exception to the general rule. Although not entitled to
one of the highest places, such as Walpole, Chatham, or
Burke, it is true nevertheless that he has been persistently
under-rated. Few historical characters have been the
victims of more hasty generalisation, too little attention
having been paid to the details of his career. Unquestion-
ably there was a spark of genius in the man, or he would
never have made such a prodigious mark upon his age.
The author of so many stupendous events must have
possessed a great brain.
The greatest of men, however, not only inspire great
deeds by their great example, but leave also a permanent
impression upon their contemporaries. Nor is personal
success essential, since the martyr who fails superbly may
be reckoned on a higher plane than the conqueror. To
this extent the »shortcomings of Wilkes need not detract
from his historical position. But the definition explains
his limitations, showing why he does not reach the highest
rank. The memory of his mission faded with his declen-
sion. He did not leave “ the legacy of heroes ; the memory
of his great name and the inspiration of his great example.”
•^The truth is that Wilkes was neither a great “con-
queror ” nor a great “ martsnr." He did not suffer very
grievously for a cause, nor did he profit mudx through
having undertaken it. If he had been a great orator like
Fox or a great parliamentary leader like Pitt, the reproach
of failure would not have clung to his reputation. Had
he fallen like Hampden the lesson that he preached might
have sunk more deeply intQ the hearts of his countrymen.
The deeds that he wrought were splendid, but he has always
414 life of JOHN WILKES
been reckoned far lower than his works. It was the
to separate, in the manner of Chatham, “ the cause from
the man.” ^ In this respect Wilkes must be held to have
failed, ^nd for this reason, in spite of his association with
so many historical triumphs, he cannot be given a plar^
among the immortals.
It is usually an idle task to attempt to explain why any
particular man has been unable to succeed, the cause of
failure in the majority of cases being merely lack of character
or want of ability. In this instance, however, since Wilkes
was imdoubtedly a man of genius, the reasons of his non-
success, some of which have been noted already, are more
difficult to discover.
Obviously his temperament was in many ways ill-suited
to his career. It was incongruous that a stem patriot should
be at the same time one of the greatest humorists of the day.
A jest was often on his lips in place of a fierce denunciation
of tyranny ; instead of hating his enemies in good old-
fashioned English style he never bore malice against one of
them. It is doubtful, even at the height of his popularity,
whether his most enthusiastic followers really believed in
his sincerity, and it was owing to this feeling that many
valuable adherents deserted him. It explains, of course,
the ebb and flow of his power. Consequently, in spite of his
personal magnetism the belief in the crusade was always
greater than the trust in the man.
There are other reasons, too, why he was not the ac-
knowledged prophet of a great cau^, an unchall^?gBl}
leader while alive, a hallowed memory when dead, like
Charles Fox or Richard Cobden. His failure to become a
great parliamentarian, which has been considered in a
previous chapter,^ gradually destroyed his influence m
the country. Since an habitual contempt for the paroclnal,
which is almost a national characteristic, has niafl® ^
^ Life of Lord Shelburne, Lor^ E. Fitzmaurice, i.
• See Chapter XVII.
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 415
alderman the butt of the satirist, it was inevitable that he
should lose prestige by his association with Guildhall.
The petty squabbles of city politics sowed dissension amongst
his supporters, while, durii^ the last twenty years^of his
life, he was merely the salaried servant of the Livery of
London, and believed by the nation at large to be kept in
his situation for the sake of charity.^
The fact that he belonged to neither political party
caused him to be more vulnerable to the attacks of his
enemies, which, as he had aroused more animosities than
any man of his day, were, as has been seen, most unmerciful
and virulent. All through his life his debts, his profanity,
and his immoralities were held up to public execration,
and though no more vicious than many other statesmen of
his age he has, in the words of an apologist, been made
" the scapegoat for a generation.” * When he had realised
that he was unable to become a power in the House of
Commons he seems to have been content to allow his in-
fluence in the country to fade away, glad to pass the evening
of his life in easy epicurianism. Probably lack of ambition
had a larger effect upon his career than any other influence,
his not being the gupreme greatness that is spurred to more
intense effort the more difficult the obstacles. And thus,
immediately he was withdrawn from the public gaze, his
memory was forgotten.
V
It would be unjust to accept the contemptuous general-
isation that Wilkes was “ always in the market.” ® On the
first occasion, when he wished to be sent as ambassador to
Constantinople, there was no question of Cutting his mouth
"^th a bribe, since his campaign against Lord Bute had not
' The newspapers, at least, convey this impression.
* Papers of a CriHc, C. W^Dilke, ii. 229.
® Literary Gleanings ^ J. E. Xhorold Rogers, p. 179.
4i6 life of JOHN WILKES
yet begun.^ In his application for. the Governorship of
Canada, to which the newspapers announced in error that
he had been appointed in the spring of 1763, there was
certaiqjy a suggestion that he was willing to stop The Nor&
Briton if the ministers would make it worth his while,
which makes this appear the most venal by far of all his
political actions. In extenuation it can only be urged
that he is said to have coveted the post for many yean,
alleging that it was his ambition “ to have reconciled the
new subjects to the English.” * But when he applied a
second time, in 1765, to be sent as British minister to
Constantinople, he was guilty of no surrender of principle
or disloyalty to his friends. Lord Rockingham being now
in power, the office was in the gift of his own party. Since
he had been an outlaw for two years there was no question
of deserting his political colleagues. All the objects for
which he had striven were now attained. General Warrants
having been abolished for all time, and Bute ostracised
from public life.®
No doubt his acceptance of a pension from the Whig
ministers lowered his reputation in the eyes of many of lus
admirers, but he cannot be accused of j corrupt motive.
The favour, which had been entirely unsolicited on his part,
was forced upon him gratuitously, and accepted only as i
" temporary provision ” until he could be ” provided for”
more suitably.® Every politician who contributed to the
annuity was under the deepest obligation to him for having
driven the king’s favourite from office,* and since he had^
' Life of Wilkes^ J, Almon, i. 57-8.
* Public Advertiser^ April 16, May 12, 1763 ; June 21, 1771 ; EufOfU^
Magazine^ xxxiii. 85; Catalogue of Satiricai Prints in British
iv. 266-7 ; Wilkes’s Marginalia in History of Late Minority (Brit,
p. 400 ; Life of Malone^ James Prior, p. 362 ; Life of Wilkes, J. Al^,
i. 59-60. .
» Add. MSS. 30,868, f. 199 ; 30.869, f. 6i ; Life of Wilkes, h Ag
ii. 53, 204, 210, 214, 232; Letters of H, Walpole (Toynbee),, vi. 3x6?
Advertiser, June 29, 1771, vide letter^from ** Menenius,’' p. 174, '
• Add. MSS. 30,868, f. 212 ; 30,869, f. 6.
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 417
expelled from Parliaijient with the result of bankruptcy,
in consequence of his service to the party as a pam-
phleteer the leaders were bound in common gratitude to
assist him. ^
The career of John Wilkes as a demagogue naturally
is divided into two periods. The first, which began with his
arrest under a General Warrant in 1763, extended until his
return from exile in 1768, while the second included the
whole turmoil of the Middlesex election. Whatever may
have been his vencilities during the first period, or previous
to it (and there is no proof of any save in reghrd to the
Governorship of Canada), he was absolutely incorruptible
afterwards. As soon as he had commenced his second
crusade neither bribes nor threats would tvun him from it.
When he obtained the support of the freeholders of the
county all his desire for a foreign embassy faded away. It
was now part of his creed that he would accept no place of
profit under the Government, and he never faltered in his
resolution. Although he knew that he would be allowed
to retain his seat in Parliament if he bore his punishment
quietly, he insisted upon presenting a petition to the House
of Commons for ^he redress of his grievances.^ While aware
that he was forfeiting all chances of a pardon, he continued
to attack the ministers at every opportunity. Certainly
it was evident to both Lord North and the Duke of Grafton
that Wilkes was neither to be bought nor sold.
There was no dishonour in allowing the Supporters of
thrill of Rights to* pay his debts. Their help was thrust
upon him voluntarily, for every patriot perceived that the
cause must suffer unless their leader was rescued from
bankruptcy. A much larger fund was contributed by the
admirers of Cobden for a similar purpose. Although
prodigal in money matters Wilkes does not appear to have
been corrupt. When he went over to the Tories he recrived
* Add. MS. 35,608, f. 286; Uji$ of Wilkes, J. AlmoB, iU. 293; Bio^
graphical and Political Anecdotes, J, Almoa, i. 8.
4i8 life of JOHN WILKES
no pension, like Burke, as a reward of his adherence, but had
he been “ always in the market ” he might have nude an
excellent bargain as the price of his apostasy a few years
previously. It was not until he was comparatively an old
man, when his political value could not have been worth
the smallest of clerkships, that at last he was "provided
for,” and then the recompense for his brave struggle on
behalf of liberty came neither from the Whig nor from the
Tory party, but was given to him by the generous citizens
of London. Since he is incomparably the greatest of the
Lord Mayors he cannot be deemed to have been unworthy
of the post of Chamberlain.
VI
It has been the tendency of modem criticism, even
when it takes a low estimate of Wilkes’s character, to
suggest that his prosecution for the two libellous publi-
cations was an act of tyranny. In the endeavour to sh 9 w
that he was the victim of persecution the temptation to
vilify the ministers of George the Third, apparently is a
more powerful motive than the desire to whitewash the
pamphleteer. Yet an examination of the charges against
him scarcely seem to prove that he was an innocent
victim, and it is improbable that he would have escaped
punishment in the present day. The libels for which he
was sentenced are, however, only indidents in his c ^eg i
important no doubt as a revelation of his moral charact<ari
but of small account in regard to the great achievements
of his life.
The " Essay on Woman,” which Wilkes tSus always
careful to style " a ludicrous poem,” cannot be defended 1^^
anyone who has read it.^ The offence of printing a liiaB»d
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 88;; The North Briton, W,
vol. i., Part I, p. xlviii. • ,
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 419
edition was just as disgraceful as the actual authorship.^
Wisely preferring that the matter should be forgotten
as soon as possible he made only one public explanation
with regard to it, an explanation, nevertheless,* wholly
inadequate and misleading.® The scandalous charge,
inserted in the frontispiece, alleging that Archbishop Stone
and Lord George Sackville were guilty of a crime that
merited capital punishment, would have rendered the
publisher liable to a prosecution for criminal libel if one
copy only had been circulated, and the imputation was
repeated still more grossly in the ” Advertisement by the
Editor.” On the last page of the brief introduction,
styled “ The Design,” there was a reference to the
wife of the Bishop of Gloucester that is almost equally
infamous.*
It is unnecessary to seek for further evidence of guilt
in the poem itself or in the accompanying parodies. The
subject-matter of the preliminary pages, apart from the
obsceneness and blasphemy of the rest, exposed the pub-
lisher to a heavy penalty, and that it was to be printed
privately, and only twelve copies struck off, did not alter
the fact that it •was a libel in the eyes of the law. Since
it was already in t5q)e the intention of publishing was
manifest, and had the authorities waited until it had been
circulated instead of using contemptible means to obtain a
proof-sheet no objection could have been taken to their
action. As it had been exhibited to his journeymen he
wa^^ound guilty both of " printing and publishing,” a ver-
dict that would be returned under similar circumstances
at the present day.* Being a criminal hbel the sentence of
* Ladies Fair and Frail, H. Bleackley, p. 36.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 112-15 : Gentleman's Magazine (1764),
P- 583.
* “ An Essay on Woman ” (London, 1871), pp. 4, 6, 10,
* Crown Rolls, King’s Bench, Public Record Office, Roll 248, No. 76 j.
Howell’s State Trials, jtix. 1124 ; Vke Law of Objeefionable DefmaHon,
G. S. Bower nn .i_^\
420 LIFE OF JOHN WfLKES
twelve months' imprisonment does not seem to have been
an excessive one.
Nor was “ No. 45 ” the “ very innocent paper ” that he
declared- it to be. Although he endeavoured to justify his
strictures by the sound constitutional axiom that "the
King’s Speech has always been regarded as the Speech of
the Minister,” the Sovereign rather than the Premier was
unmistakably the object of his tirade. In spite of cunning
phraseology the insinuation that the king was responsible
for the falsehoods in the Speech from the Throne is mani-
fest throughout the article, George being accused also of
having sacrificed the honour of the Crown.^ No English
newspaper in modem times has ventured to attack the
monarch in such unmeasured language, and if any did so
it would be compelled to apologise and retract under threat
of prosecution. Whatever may have been his faults George
the Third was never lacking in courage and decision, and
when he realised that the enemy, who had been publishing
. lampoons for so long with impunity, was at last delivered
into his hands, it would have been wholly inconsistent
with his principles not to have made an example of him.
And Wilkes, who was well aware of the* risks he ran in
committing the offence of Use majesU, does not seem to
deserve the crown of mart5U‘dom.
VII
•0 *
Unhappily for his fame as an author most of Wilkes’s
writings are of ephemeral interest, and are scarcely ifitei'
ligible to posterity. Indeed of all the mighty army ^
political essayists there are only perhaps Swift, JunhB.
Burke, and Cobbett whose works have any pemiaoen*
value. Moreover the pamphlets of the first are 0 ^
mainly out of respect for his^genius, those of the
^ Th« North Briton, J. Williams, 1763, ii, i ;
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 421
for the sake of his -style, and those of the last by the
historical student in quest of information. Burke alone,
an exception to every rule, is studied with delight both
on account of his manner and his matter. It v» a hard
test to place Wilkes in such illustrious company, especi-
ally as his writings are of less general interest than the
others.
Obviously he takes a far lower rank than either of his
contemporaries. He had none of the power of reason,
the deep political wisdom, and the vast resources of imagi-
nation that distinguish the works of Burke. He did not
possess the dignified restraint that gives to the utterances
of Junius their oracular effect, and little of his force of
invective and glittering sarcasm. But with the exception
of these he takes ran]^ below no other political writer of
his time. His style at its best is admirable, clear, and
lucid as the verse of Pope, the meaning never in the least
ambiguous. He had the knack, as exemplified in his
portraits of Bute and Pitt, of presenting a vivid character-
sketch in a few brief sentences, and sound common sense
is shown in all his opinions. Most of his publications reveal
a knowledge and sagacity in public affairs* that none but a
high intelligence could possess.
It is his misfortune, however, that he is never the chief
spokesman, like Swift or like Biuke, on a great occasion.
As an apology for the elder Pitt the " Observations on the
Papers relative to the Rupture with Spain ” appear super-
fiugps, since a more satisfactory defence of the foreign
policy of the great commoner is found in the utterances of
the statesman himself. ^ Likewise his “ Letter to the Duke
of Grafton ” is eclipsed entirely by the two famous letters
of Junius to the same nobleman.* The celebrated letter
" to the worthy electors of the borough of Aylesbury ” was
‘ A Complete CoUe^ion of Genuine Papers in the Case of John Wilkes
(Paris, 1767), p. *23, •
* Life of wakes, J. Almra, iii. 184.
422 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
merely an attempted vindication of •" No. 45 ” and the
" Essay on Woman,” not a very honourable task, nor did
he show much regard to truth in the performance of it.‘
One of the best of his literary productions is the Dedication
prefixed to the FaU of Mortimer, in which his wit and
sarcasm reach a high level, but this after all is no more ttian
a coarse lampoon at the expense of Bute and the king’s
mother.*
The publication of The North Briton, occurring at a
momentous epoch in the nation’s history, gave him a much
better opportunity. But although the papers that he
wrote for his famous periodical, which can be identified by
the aid of his letters to Churchill, are far more brilliant
and more sane than those of his collaborator, it is not the
best literature of which he was capable.® Few of them
reach a high level of dignity, most betray evidence of
careless composition, and nearly all deal in mean scurrilities
which are only tolerable when tempered by the fine irony of
Junius.
Being a skilful author Wilkes wrote admirable letters,
some of the most well known, as well as the best, being
appropriately written to his daughter, and had they been
composed with a view to publication they might have
held a permanent place in literature. As a historian,
however, judging from the ” Introduction to the History of
England,” he had no qualifications whatever, the subject-
matter being worthless, and even his clear and graceful
style becomes puerile and obscure wiien he attempt^tft
describe the infamies of the Stuarts and the nobility of the
principles of the revolution.* It is remarkable that
who could write so well has left so little that survives.
On the whole it seems probable that the fragment of atito-
^ Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iii. 86.
• A Complete Collection of Genuine Papers (Paris, 1767), p.
• Add. MSS. 30,878 passim.
• Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, v. 161.
THE VEHDIGT OF POSTERITY 423
biography that has .escaped destruction is the work by
which he vwU be best remembered.^
As was the fashion of the time Wilkes had a great
fondness for vers de sociiU. On several occasions^ on the
i6th of August he composed a Birthday Ode in honour of
his beloved Polly, some of which have been preserved in
the pages of The New Foundling Hospital for Wit. One
of the shortest, and therefore one of the best, was addressed
to Miss Wilkes in the year 1777 :
" The noblest gift you could receive.
The noblest gift this day I’d give ;
A father’s heart I would bestow
But that you stole it long ago.” ^
A pretty young lady once whispered to him in a crowd
in the Assembly Rooms at Bath : " I can’t bear to be so
squeezed by people one does not know.”
In due course the merry wag replied in the following
" impromptu ” ;
“ With spirit lovely Lydia cries,
Sly Cupid bhsking in her eyes,
‘ I can’t bear the creatures who thus press and shove ;
No — ^let me be press’d by the man that I love.’ ” ®
The rest of Wilkes’s poetical attempts were no better
and very little worse than these examples. As a writer
«f. poetry he was probably on the same level as Horace
Walpole or Lady Temple, and his poems were worthy of a
place in Lady Miller’s vase at Bath-Easton.
^ John Wilkes : An Unfinished Autobiography (Harrow, 1888) ; Add,
30.865. This book, which is now Very scarce, should be republished
under the supervision of a capable editor,
• The New Foundling Hospital for Wit (1784), i. 389.
• Letters of Wilkes to Aw Daughter^ i. 200 ; ii. I 94 ^S»
424
LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
VIII
John Wilkes he was for Middlesex,
They made him a Knight of the Shire ;
And he made a fool of Alderman Bull,
And he call’d Parson Horne a liar.”
—Old Song,
In many respects a demagogue is frequently somewhat
of a humbug. Since he makes his appeal to the most
ignorant minds and to the lowest intelligences it is inevitable,
if he has a sense of humour, that he should often feel
contempt for his followers. Occasionally, too, especially if
he achieves a great success, he will be apt to regard his own
personality as of greater importance than the cause that
he advocates. Though he may be perfectly sincere he has
lapses of enthusiasm, like the rest of public men, and such
lapses will be all the more noticeable in his case because
at other times he scintillates at a white heat. While he
may profess that “ the voice of the people is the voice of
God,” he will desire, if he is a man of prudence, to interpret
the pronouncements of the deity as he efiooses, which all
efficient prophets have done since the dawn of history.
Having both a very human and a very humorous personality
John Wilkes possessed all these frailties in full measure,
and moreover, as already seen, he loved to make a pose of
his insincerity.^
A well-known story illustrates contemporary opitBC^
with regard to his honesty of purpose. One afternoon he
told the Speaker in private that he had to deliver a petition
to the House from " a set of the greatest scoundrels on earth.'
Being called upon to present it shortly afterwards he rose
in his place with the utmost gravity.
" Sir,” he aimounced, " I hold in my hand a petitiba
t
' Correspondance LiUSraire . . . par Jean Fran9ois de la Harpe, U
THE VEROICT OF POSTERITY 425
from a most intelligent, independent, and enlightened body
of men.” ^
But although he could not help despising the rabble
that made him their idol it does not follow thatjhe was
untrue to the cause of liberty. The story of the petition
obviously refers to a late period in his public career when
he had ceased to be a Wilkite. Without any doubt, too,
he always had a contempt for the House of Commons,
which explains his attitude on so many occasions.
" Be as impudent as you can,” was his advice to members
of the parliamentary bar, “ and say what comes uppermost
in your mind. Jack Lee is the best heard of any counsel
and he is always abusing us.” *
Henry Addington, the Speaker, once overheard a con-
versation in the lobby between Wilkes and Major Scott,
when the latter had come under the ban of the House of
Commons.
“ I give you joy,” exclaimed the ex-patriot ; “ I am glad
to see you in full dress. It is an occasion on which a man
should appear to the best advantage.”
“ Joy ! What do you mean ? ” replied Scott. “ Why,
I am here to be r,fprimanded.” •
" Exactly, and therefore I congratulate you,” said Wilkes,
“ When the Speaker has finished abuse them all con-
foundedly, and then you will be sent to Newgate or to the
Tower, and then you can be member for Middlesex or
Westminster, whichever you like.” ®
, The sublime egotfem of the man often gave the impres-
sion That he was playing for his own hand. On one occasion
he and one of his satellites issued a proclamation beginning
“ We, the people of England,” and concluding " by order
of the meeting.” *
‘ Lift of Lord Sidmoutk, George Pellew, i. 77.
* Boswell’s Life of Johnson, G. B. Hill, iii. 224.
' Life of Lord SidmotM, G. Pellew, i. 76.
* Old and New London, E. Walford, i. 41X.
426 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
In jest, too, he was not afraid of boasting of his
mendacity.
“ Give me a grain of truth,” he used to say, ” and I will
mix it VP with a great mass of falsehood, so that no chemist
shall ever be able to separate them.” ^
It is unfair, however, to judge a great humorist, like
Wilkes, out of his own mouth. All through his life he
seemed to base his conduct upon the Horatian adage “ Quam-
quam ridentem dicere verum quid vetat ? ” smiling invari-
ably when he was expected to be serious. Such demeanour
was often only a disguise to make his utterances more
oracular and paradoxical. In spite of his quips and aanks
he was sincere and honest enough in all the great events of
his adventurous career. During the whole of his long war-
fare with Parliament he was as much in earnest as any man
who has ever fought for freedom, displaying often enough
the obvious faults of the demagogue, but remaining always
a true ” friend of liberty.” There is no evidence that
disillusionment came to him until the close of the American
War.
• IX
To morality, of course, he made no pretence, rejoicing
on the contrary in his reputation as a profligate. But even
in this, respect his iniquities have been exaggerated t>y
assiduous enemies, and it is necessary to be acquainted
with the full extent of his depravity in order to form a jnjf
estimate of his character. As shown in the pre<Sding
pages, he was a man of many mistresses, being unaWa to
practise continence or obtain a divorce. It was his boast
that he ” loved all women except his wife.” • Even thotig^*
it may be impossible to agree with such a tolerant friend as
Thomas Hollis, who regarded " the irregularities of
^ Diary of Crabb Robinson^ iii, no.
* Correspondance Litt^aire , . , par J.-F, de La Harpe» ^9^^ '
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 427
as spots on the sun/’* one cannot stigmatise him on this
account, as many have done, a worthless scoundrel.^ If
none were to be ranked among the immortals who had broken
the seventh commandment Ol5mipus would be sacjly de-
populated.
When scarcely more than thirty years of age he had
already earned the reputation for immorality that deservedly
clung to him through life.* No sooner had he became famous
than it was possible for his enemies to point to him as one
of the most dissolute men of the age. His connection with
the Medmenham monks was already notorious.® The
" Essay on Woman ” was considered by all but obstinate
admirers as " the most blasphemous and indecent poem
that was ever composed.” * His ugly countenance, vilified
by Hogarth’s caricature, was regarded as the index of his
soul.
In spite of his plain features he received much en-
couragement from women. The amour with Mrs. Stafford
and the innumerable references in his correspondence to
persistent fair ones are instances of the real temptations
that fell in his way. Being endowed with a “warm
imagination” — to^use his own euphemistic* expression— he
could not resist the opportunities of posing as a lion among
the ladies, which await all popular heroes at the height of
their fame. Except, however, in the case of Mrs. Barnard
none of his liaisons seem to have been with women of position,
indicating that, although many were proud to be seen to
flirt vith the distinguished patriot, few were disposed to
exceed the limits of philandering.® It is evident, too, that
Wilkes required obvious provocation before he ventured
to drop the handkerchief. Still, the history of his amours
is a long and unedifying one, and though it is certainly an
' Memoirs of Thomas Hollis ^ p. 289.
* Vide Potter's Letter, Add. MS. 30,867, f. 103.
® Public AdverHsetf May 25, 1763.
* Letters of H, Walpole (To^bee), v. 387.
* Letters of Wilkes to his Dau^htevt ii. 54, 60, 64, 66, 194.
4a8 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
error to imagine him, which many have done, as heartless
and insatiable as Casanova, he was an avowed libertine both
in principle and in practice.
To, his wife he was both faithless and disloyal, avowing
publicly that she was “ perhaps the woman in the world
most unfit for him,” and taking an early opportunity of
deserting her.^ It is a poor excuse for such conduct to plead
as he did that she was “ half as old again ” as himself
when he married her, or to suggest incompatibility of temper.
There is a much better excuse for him. Although Mrs,
Wilkes had the reputation of being a good woman, her
maternal affection appears to have fallen far short of her
piety, for, while the husband was a devoted father, the wife
was one of the most callous and apathetic of mothers.* A
lady who was never able to win the love and confidence
of such a daughter as Polly Wilkes could not have been
altogether sound at heart.
It was the fashion to look upon Wilkes as one of the
most profane men of the day, and many of his contem-
poraries have borne witness that his conversatipn was
interlarded with blasphemy. Jests upon sacred things
were tabooed in his time by all devout Christians, and
the modem clerical humorist would have been regarded
as an absolute pagan. After making all allowance for
squeamishness, there can be no doubt that the demagogue
deserved his reputation. His ” Description of Medmen-
ham Abbey ” and the notes in the " !i^ay on Woman
prove to what extent he has cast ridicule upon religio#-*
Of the scriptmal jokes contained in his letters to his dau^®
there is little, however, to shock the ears of piety.*
also one of the most tactful of men when he chose to, b®»
he seems to have tempered the keenness of his wit tO'
susceptibilities of his audience, never alienating any of I®
^ The North Briton (W. Bingley), vol. i., Part I, p. Ixaptvi.
* Letter from Wilkes to Dell, April 26, 1757 (Hartwell
* Letters to and from Mr. WitkA (1769), pp. 17-20.
* Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, ii. 47, 148,
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 429
numerous clerical acquaintances, like his Scottish friends,
by the offensiveness of his sarcasm. Likely enough this
partiality for blasphemy was merely a form of horseplay,
since he appears to have been aware, as his speediies in
Parliament indicate, that those who venture to insult the
religion of others are only justified by the most honourable
motives.'
It is often supposed that Wilkes was an agnostic,
although there is no conclusive testimony. Probably his
profane conversion was responsible for the popular impres-
sion. No doubt, his ostentatious attendance at church in
most instances was for the sake of appearance, but, on the
other hand, there was a strong vein of superstition in his
temperament, which renders it improbable that he was a
convert to rationalism.® Several of his speeches in Parlia-
ment seem to reveal a deep religious feeling. His famous
declaration that religion was as ridiculous in his mouth as
liberty in the mouth of Dr. Johnson was merely a proof
that he realised what people thought of him.® While no
priest ^eems to have come to shrive him at the end there
were clergymen like Dr. Warton and Mr. Hewson of Shanklin
who were his friends to the last, and these Vrould not have
been intimate with an avowed infidel. It is certain, how-
ever, that public opinion persisted in regarding him as a
free-thinker, the newspapers making his impiety a frequent
subject of jest even when he was an old man.®
There were many admirable traits in Wilkes’s character.
•
^ Speeches of Mr. Wilkes^ pp, 323-43 ; cf. Reminiscences of C. Butler^
73 ; The Sexagenarian^ W. Beloe, ii. 9 ; Life of Hannah More, iii. 56 ;
letters of Mrs. Carter to Mrs. Montagu, iii. 53 ; Letters of Wilkes to his
Baughter, i. 130.
* Grenville Papers, ii. 249 ; Add. MS. 30.867, f. 249 ; Letters of WUhes
^ his Daughter, ii. 98, iii. 209 ; Political Register, ii. 410 ; LeUers of Wilkes
to his Daughter, iii. 209.
' ^oswelVs Life of Johnson, G. B. Hm,4ii. 224.
• The World, Aug. 13, 18, 23,25, a8, 30; Sept, it, 12, 28, 29, 1787 ;
28, 1789. Cf. Letters of Wilkm to his Daughter, ii. X13, iii. 261, for
references to the Deity,
430 LIFE OF JOFPN WILKES
During his long contest with Parliament he believed un-
questionably that he was suffering for the sake of a cause,
and he bore his long persecution with splendid patience?
Almost every incident of his life shows that he possessed
an indomitable courage, which neither shrank from the
violence of a bully nor was dismayed by the threats of a
tyrant. Hardships failed to sour him, or even to depress
his high spirits. Enemies agreed that he was a man of his
word, and, setting aside his habit of writing vituperative
paragraphs in the newspapers — ^in which he merely imitated
his opponents — ^there was little that was mean or paltry
in his methods, all his great battles being fought fairly and
squarely in the open.* In an age of drunkenness he set an
example of sobriety, and at an epoch when high play was a
fashionable vice he was not afraid to denounce gambling.*
Although a fastidious epicure he was by no means a gour-
mand. It is curious to note that he was one of the first to
introduce the custom of having one dish only at a time
on the table instead of the customary plethora.*
In temperament he was an aristocrat, as was quite com-
patible with his early training in “ the principles of the
Revolution,” ahd his youthful association with the great
distillery where his father ruled in feudal style over a little
colony of vassals.® Despite his bourgeois origin he had no
difficulty in forcing his way into county society when he
became lord of the manor of Aylesbury, which, considering
the hindrance that his wife must have been to him, is (®e
of the most convincing proofs of his power of fascingtio*-
In contemporary memoirs there is unanimous corrobors'
1 Literary Anecdotes ^ J. Nichols, ix. 476.
» Historical Sketches, Henry, Lord Brougham (3rd series), p. ^
Letters of Wilkes to his Daughter, i. 26.
* Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 146 ; Letters of Wilkes to his
i. 140, ii. 107, 217, iii. 208 ; Literary Anecdotes, J. Nichols, iX, 477 ^
♦ History of Buckinghamshire, G. Lipscomb, ii. 40 ; Rms^ <
(1904), i. 45-6; European Magazine, xxxiii. 229; Life pf [
Reynolds, i, 21, n» 2. •
® Reminiscences of Charles Butler, i. 73.
the verdict of posterity 431
tion of the verdict of George the Third with regard to
Wilkes’s charm and politeness. Naturally, he was not
u little vain of his immense renown, and there are many
humorous instances of the " guid conceit ” that wa» one of
his most valuable credentials.^ Although failing to make
any mark in a parliamentary debate he was in his element
as a popular speaker, many of his mob orations, too, being of
necessity quite extempore. Whenever at a loss for language
it was his habit to bawl out some familiar catchword.®
Being associated with several events of historical impor-
tance it is impossible that the memory of Wilkes can pass
into oblivion like that of some of his contemporaries who
were placed on a far higher plane during their lives. It is
probable indeed that his fame, which has gone through
such strange fluctuations while he lived and also since his
death, will be established on a smer foundation in the
immediate future. The biographies of the most prominent
statesmen of his time— such as Chatham, Mansfield, Shel-
burne, North, and Burke — all of which must be re-written
in the Jight of modem research, are bound to shed a re-
flected lustre upon the great patriot, whether their authors
are impartial, laudatory or censorious.* It is difficult to
imagine that he can be more thoroughly aspersed than he
has been in the past, and now that the worst is known o im-m.
him there is little opportunity for the display of imagina-
tion. Hitherto he does not seem to have been given too
high a place in histoinj.
X
No man ever inspired warmer friendships than John
Wilkes. No man ever quarrelled more frequently with his
I e.g. SwaUofufiM and Its Owners, Constance, Lady Russell, p. 264.
j of Freierich Reynolds, li. 97.
Vide ^d North, Reginald Lucas, i. 76-109, ii. 42, 56, 174. Life of
16* Chatham, Basil Williams, i. aoi, 255, ii. 6, 145, 155-6,
*163-7. 169, 203. 249-53, 268, ffy. These recent biographies ate a
proof of the statement made above.
432 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
comrades. With the exception of John Churchill and Dr.
Wilson there are none that remained on intimate terms with
him during the whole of his pohtical career. Both John
Armstnong and Humphrey Cotes, who had loved him like a
brother, fell out with him at last. George Onslow, William
Fitzherbert, and Lauchlin Macleane, to whom he was under
the deepest obligations, all turned from him in the end.
Parson Home and his city friends, after making him their
idol, became his bitterest foes. The great Chatham, who
once had delighted in his society, made the fiercest attack
that was ever levelled against him.
It does not follow that he was invariably in the wrong.
Most of these animosities were political, and the life of the
parliamentarian imposes the severest strain upon all friend-
ship. In the fierce progress of Wilkes’s tempestuous career
it was inevitable that many old ties should be broken. There
is no doubt, however, that he was a vexatious colleague.
Often enough he was both “ irritable and passionate,"
while it was notorious that when once he had made up
his mind nothing would turn him from his purpose^^ And
whenever a breach occurred he had no mercy upon a former
friend, attackiilg him with the utmost fesocity.
Yet at the same time, he bore no malice aglainst his worst
^finemy, being wholly without rancour, and never influenced
by any mean desire for revenge. For 'Lord Sandwich he
had always a partiality notwithstanding their great feud.’
To Lord Mansfield, who had been the judge at his trial, M
presented a copy of his TheophrasUts? Although^L*^
Chatham had called him a " libeller ” and a " blasphemer,
he had the utmost reverence for the great statesman to tb*
end of his days.* During the illness of the king, no ope
* Records of My Life, J. Taylor, i. i lo ; Letters of WUhts to Ms
i. 141.
* Reminiscences of C. Butler, i. 75. ,
» Life of Wilkes, J. Almon, iv. 33a ; Letters of WiUus to
i. 163. *
* Anecdotes of Lord Chatham (}. Almon, 1810), iii, 363. ,
THE VEI^DIGT OF POSTERITY 433
was more grieved, as his letters show, than "that devil
Wilkes," who a few years previously had told Junius
•that he hated the man.* At the general election of
1790 he went out of his way to vote for Parson Horae
when it would have been better for his interests had he
abstained.* Few men in public life have shown so much
benevolence and kindly tolerance in sweeping aside old
animosities.
Often enough the provocation came, or must have seemed
to come, from the friend himself. There is no doubt that
Wilkes had good reason for believing that Onslow and
Fitzherbert, in spite of their professions of regard, began
to grow lukewarm in his interests directly they obtained
office. Although Chatham, in all probability, was not guilty
of the meanness of delivering his famous denunciation out
of a desire to conciliate the king, Wilkes certainly had cause
to feel aggrieved that his old leader did not speak a word in
his favour until his imprisonment was over and he was free
to wield his great power.® In his opinion, too, Horae,
Town^nd, and Oliver appeared no doubt to be actuated
by the basest envy. Quarrels with his own allies were
inevitable, since he always considered thaf the Whigs had
behaved to him with gross ingratitude. Certainly no
man has ever done so much for his party who has receivs
such a small rewafd.
Some of Wilkes’s enmities were caused, as in the case of
Lauchlin Macleane, by his neglect to refund the money which
be hjd borrowed ; others, like that of Dr. Armstrong and
Smollett, were the result of his attacks upon the Scots.*
Most of them, too, occurred during his middle age. As he
advanced in years and the fierce passions that he had aroused
began to die away these frequent squabbles ceased entirely.
I Letters of Junius (Bohn, 1908), ii. 87.
, Add. MS. 30,895, i. 93 : Life of Sheridan, T. Mo(«e, ii. 130 .
The Beautiful Leidy Craven, A. M. Broadley and L. Melville, ii. 153-3 ;
t'apers of a Critic, C. W. DUke, ii. :^o-3.
Add. MSS. 30,869, f. 29 ; 30,871, ff. 56, 37.
•2 E
434 LIFE OF JOHN WdLKES;
All through his life he was somewhat' exacting towards his
intimates, loving to have a docile satellite at his co mmand
like Dell, Cotes, Suard, or William Sharpe, but he was*
inclinedo occasionally to forget the services that they had
rendered as soon as they were of no more use to him.
Probably such cases were the result of forgetfulness rather
than ingratitude, for he was not as a rule unmindful of old
acquaintances. It has been recorded by the biographer of
his most bitter enemy that “ he cheered the deathbed of
Lloyd by means of his bounty ; and after burying Churchill
at his own expense, erected an appropriate monument to
his memory.” ^ It is unlikely that a man who was a good
son and the most devoted of fathers could have been a bad
friend.
It is easy to imagine the vicissitudes of his relationship
with one of his old comrades such as James Townsend;
the enthusiasm with which such a man would welcome
the advent of the great patriot; how he would accept
him with pride as his leader, full of admiration for his
courage and sagacity, delighting in his wit and high spirits.
The inevitable quarrel when two masterful temperaments
came into coliiston, and the pain and indignation of the
colleague when he realised that the implacable Wilkes, was
determined to allow no armistice and give no quarter, for
every blow returning ten. Yet after years of the fiercest
animosity the demagogue would harbour no resentment
when once the contest was over, ever ready to meet his
enemy with a cheery smile and a warm grip of the Ijpndr
effecting a reconciliation sooner or later with the dourest
of foes. Although it might be difficult to forget the injuryF
the charm of the man made it always easy to forgive hi®»
and when it was remembered that his combativeness ww
the result of the hard battle in which he was cotistSttflyi
engaged, the memory of his offence could not haV®
such a bitter one after all. T?ius, in the sunset of 1^ Sfs
* l,ife of J. Home Toohe, A. Stephens, ii. a3|.
THE VERDICT OF POSTERITY 435
he was surrounded by kindly faces, and many who dis-
approved of his vices were pleased to believe that they were
•counterbalanced by his virtues, feeling a sincere affection
for the brave old patriot who had fought such a good fight,
and proud to reckon him their friend.
APPENDIX I
THE AUTHORSHIP OF “AN ESSAY ON WOMAN”
M ore than fifty years ago Mr. C. W. Dilke
endeavoured to prove that Wilkes did not
write the Essay on Woman,” and since the
publication of his celebrated apologia there
has been scarcely an attempt to challenge his conclusions.'
With the exception of Mr. H. S. Ashbee, who seems to have
written the introduction to Hotten*s edition of the poem,
no one has dared to fix the guilt upon the member for
Aylesbury.* Most modem critics have taken it for granted
that Potter was the sole author, or that Wilkes, at any rate,
only acted as a collaborator.
There is some evidence in favour of his innocence. At
the time of his trial he was anxious, for obvious reasons, to
create the impression that the poem had been wntten by
his friend, and In the notes upon the case, prepared by
Philipps, the lawyer, for the instruction of counsel, there
was an emphatic statement to this effect. “It is a^'
cumstance almost of universal notoriety that the Essay
on Woman * is a parody of Pope's ‘ Essay on Man, wrote
about fifteen years^ ago by Mr. Potter, son of the late
•Archbishop of Canterbury.” ®
Evidently many of his friends accepted this explanation.
Captain Edward Thompson, who was a bosom friend of both
Wilkes and Churchill and, being a ribald poet himself,
' Notes and Queries y and series, iv. 1-2, 21-2, 4 *“ 3 * of a Critic »
229 - 79 - Since this was written Mr. Eric R. Watson's admirable arti-
cles have been published in Notes and Queries, nth series, ix. 121 ei seq.
* "An Essay on Woman and other pii^s ** (London). Privately
printed, September, 1871. [J. C. Hotten.]
* Add. MSS. 30|885, f. 155,
437
438 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
likely to be in their confidence, has left a written declaration
that the poem was not composed by the patriot.^ There is a
manuscript note also in a printed copy of the " Essay on.
Woman^” in the handwriting of the late Alexander Dyce,
which says : “ My late venerable friend, William Maltby,
was intimately acquainted with Wilkes, and assured me that
Wilkes said to him, ' I am not the author of the " Essay on
Woman ” ; it was written by Potter.’ ” * Horace Walpole,
however, always well informed in such a matter, obviously
believed that the two friends had written the poem in
collaboration.*
The evidence of his guilt is much more conclusive, for
by collecting his public and private declarations on the
subject one discovers that he has made a full confession.
In his " Letter to the Electors of Aylesbury,” dated from
Paris on October 22, 1764, he enters into an elaborate,
though not a very truthful, explanation. " I now pro-
ceed to the other charge brought against me, which respects
an idle poem call’d an Essay on Woman and a few other
detach’d verses. ... I will always maintain the ^ right
of private opinion in its full extent, when it is not fol-
lowed by any open, public offence to any ^tablishment or
indeed to any individual. ... In my own closet I had a
ijig ht to examine and even try by the keen edge of ridicule
any opinions I pleas’d. If I have laugh’d pretty freely
at the glaring absurdities of the most monstrous creed
which was ever attempted to be imposed on the credulity
of Christians, a creed which our great 'Tillotson wish’d tlw»
Church of England was fairly rid of, it was in i«vate I
laugh’d. I am not the first good protestant who has aonjs’d
himself with the egregious nonsense ... of that stra^
perplex’d and perplexing mortal . . . Athanasius. I
> Poems of Paul Whitehead, E. Thompson, p. xxxii. ^
* Vide copy of " An Essay on Woman '* in the Dyce libfBty ®
Victoria and Albert Museum. , ^ .
• Letters of H, Walpole (Toynbee) ,cv. 394; Memoirs of
Qeorge II J, H. Walpole, i. 246.
APPENDIX I 439
however, no ofience to any one individual of the community
. . . a Stuart only cou’d make the refinement in tyranny
of ransacking and robbing the recesses of closets and studies
in order to convert private amusements into state crimes. . . ,
The neat, prim, smirking chaplain of that babe* of grace
... the Earl of March, was highly offended at my having
made an essay on woman, ... He proceeded to make very
unfair extracts. . . . 'The most vile blasphemies were forg’d
and publish’d as part of a work which in reality contain’d
nothing but fair ridicule on some doctrines I cou’d not
believe ... a few portraits drawn from warm life, with the
too high colouring of a youthful fancy and two or three
descriptions, perhaps too luscious, which tho’ Nature and
Woman might pardon a Kidgell and a Mansfield could not
fail to condemn.” ^
In the " Letter to the Duke of Grafton,” dated Paris
on December 12, 1766, there is a still more obvious acknow-
ledgment of his guilt. “ Mr. Pitt had no doubt his views
in even feeding me with flattery from time to time,” he
declared ; " on occasions, too, where candour and indulg-
ence" were all I cou’d claim. He may remember the com-
pliments he paid me on two certain poetnf in the year 1754.
If I were to take the declarations made by himself and the
late Mr. Potter d la lettre they were more charm’d with
those verses after the ninety-ninth reading than aftdTthe
first. ... I will now submit to your grace if there was
not something peculiarly base and perfidious in Mr. Pitt’s
calling me a blasphemer of my God for those very verses
at'*a time when I was absent and dangerously ill from an affair
of honour. 'The charge, too, he knew to be false, for the
whole ridicule of those two pieces was confined to certain
mysteries which formerly the unplac'd and unpension’d Mr.
Pitt did not think himself obliged to believe.” *
* A Complete Collection of Genuine Papers in the Case of Mr. Wilkes
(Paris, 1767), pp, 152^ ; Life of Wilkes^ J. Almon, iii. H2~i6,
* A Complete Collection of Ginuine Papers^ pp. 166-7 J ^^f^
J . Almon, iii, 191-2*
440 LIFE OF JOHN* WILKES
i
Undoubtedly it is the “ Essay on Woman ” that is here
indicated, for it was in reference to this work that Htt
declared in a speech in the House of Commons on the Nov. ,
24, 1763, that Wilkes was “ a blasphemer of his God.”
A note from Thomas Potter, written to Wilkes from
Bath on Oct. 27, 1754, corroborates the statement that Pitt
was amused by Wilkes’s poems.
“ I have this moment read your parody for the ninety-
ninth time,” said the writer, “and have laughed as heartily
as I did at the first. ... At dinner yesterday we {i.e. Pitt
and Potter) read over your Parody. He (Pitt) bid me tell
you he found with great concern you was as wicked and
agreeable as ever. I think you exceed yourself. I have
made a few verbal amendments.” ^
Wilkes was always anxious to maintain that the “ Essay
on Woman ” was one of the parodies that Pitt admired.
His brother Heaton was horrified at the apparent con-
fession in the “ Letter to the Duke of Grafton,” and wrote at
once to remonstrate.
“Let me wish two lines totally omitted ...” he
protested on the April 14, 1767, “ I mean that part \^ere
you confess yoursplf the Author of the Essay on Woman.
It can in no way raise your fame in friends’ eyes and with
enemies must give them an advantage over you.” *
“~tli his reply from Paris on April 22, 1767, Wilkes gave a
full explanation of his motives.
“I studiously omitted such paw paw words as the
Essay on Woman and the Vent Creator f’ said he, “ but I «
could not omit so home a stroke at Chatham, nor coul^it
be made without my being the author acknowledged as such
and prov’d before the House of Lords. My defence on that
point in the Letter to the Borough of Aylesbury is solw-
I never publish’d, I never gave copies, etc. Even as a
juvenile performance I only claim candour and indukfft^’
APPENDIX I 441
No man has a right to enquire into my private amusements
if they are not prejudicial to Society.” *
. Having been proved guilty of both printing and pub-
lishing the poem Wilkes seems to have imagined that he
would incur no greater odium by acknowledging the author-
ship, especially as he regarded his defence as “ solid,” and
the avowed object of the last confession was to attack Lord
Chatham. Consequently one may be inclined to doubt
whether it really was the “ Essay on Woman ” that the
great statesman saw in 1754. From Potter’s letter it would
appear to have been a short parody that might be read many
times over, possibly the “Veni Creator,” Wilkes also
speaks of iwo poems.
Another letter from Potter seems to show, moreover,
that a year later the “ Essay ” was still unfinished.
“ Who your Mrs. M. is with whom you rather wish me
to I am at a loss to guess,” the barrister wrote to
Wilkes from Exeter on July 31, 1755. “I could reverse
the letter and attempt the Essay on Woman without even
the hope of having a Commentator. They are a cursed
race and often marr the text. Take notice I do not mean
to censure your ^annotations. Thou art; no marr text.
But you sometimes supply a text when without your assist-
ance it would be defective.” *
From these cryptic observations it would seem fliat
the two friends were collaborating in the work. On his
own confession Potter was in the habit of making “ verbal
^^endments ” in WHkes’s poems.* For these reasons I am
inclined to think, in the absence of any evidence to the
contrary, that he had some share in the composition, and
that the pair may be regarded as joint authors, as a great
number of their contemporaries believed them to be. In
my opinion it would be unwise to acquit Potter entirely.
, * in MSS. sold at Sotheby’s on Aug. i, 1913, to possession of
Hie author. (Never before puWished;)
Add. MS. 30.880 B. f. 3. (Panted for the first time.]
Add. MS, 30,867, f. 103.
442 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Wilkes, nevertheless, must have .put on the finishin g
touches, and brought the poem up to date. O riginall y
composed in the early fifties,* its references to Peg Wo ffing .,
ton, Fanny Murray, and “ Hussey’s Duchess ” were some-
what out of date in the year 1762. The allusions to Sack-
ville, to Hogarth, and to Lord Bute obviously were written
at the later period when Potter was in his grave. One
seems to trace the true Wilkes manner throughout the whole
composition.
Much of the evidence that has been thought to point
to Wilkes as the sole author cannot be regarded as con-
clusive. The testimony of Michael Curry, in his exami-
nation before the House of Lords on Nov. 15, 1763, to the
effect that the MS. of the poem was in the handwriting
of the member for Aylesbury, may be rejected as tainted,
while it does not disprove that Potter may have given
considerable help.* The letter of Wilkes to Dr. Brocklesby
on Dec. ig, 1763, is too evasive and loose in its phraseology
to constitute a confession of guilt.® The same argument
applies to his letters to Kearsley of Oct. 14, Oct. 18, and
Oct. 21, 1762 (the originals of which I found in the Wilkes
MSS. at the Gvildhall Library), for hac^ he been editing
an edition of Bunyan or Milton he might have spoken to
his printer of “ my Pilgrim’s Progress ” or " my Paradise
L^t ” just as he spoke of “ my Essay on Woman.”
Only ninety-four lines of the poem were printed, but it
is certain that much more existed in manuscript, if indeed
it was not entirely finished. Accordin^to Wilkes “ not qui^
a fourth part ” was set up in type, indicating that hS hwl
not published all that he had written.* On Feb. i 5 »
he promised Humphrey Cotes that “ as soon as I get thus
^ Between 1 751-5.
• Journals of the House of Lords, xxx, 415-17 ; Curry's First
in Add. MS. 22, 132, f. 271 ; Guildhall MS., 214, 2. vol. i. Vide ''
Account of the Proceeding against Mr. Wilkes."
• Letters to and from Mr, Wilkes (1169), p. 63.
• A Complete Collection of Genuine Papers, p. 134.
^APiENDIX I 443
I will send you more of the Essay on Woman. How much
have you already ? ” ^ On March i of the same year he
. boasted of “ the little part ” that the Government “ have
got ” of the poem.® Finally, in his letter to Dr. Bjocklesby
on Dec. 19, 1763, he quoted from the nineteenth line of
the fourth epistle of the “ Essay on Woman.” ® It is un-
likely too that he would have begun to print until the
whole manuscript was ready.
Mr. H. S. Ashbee has pointed out that no copy can
claim to be an original— that is, one of the original thirteen
copies struck off at Wilkes’s private press — unless it has
certain characteristics.* It must answer in every particular
to the bibliographical description given by Kidgell* It must
be a parody of Pope’s “ Essay on Man,” almost line for
line, printed in red. The frontispiece (a description of
which has been given in Chapter VIII) must be engraved
on copper, and decorated with a phalic emblem. It must
contain all the passages alluded to by both Kidgell and
Farmer.® The Frontispiece must be followed by “The
Advertisement ” and “ The Design,” page i to page 9 of
the ^Essay”; then a chasm to page 119 where begins
“ The Universal^Prayer,” which reaches to page 122 ; then
“ The Dying Lover,” pp. 123-4, " The Veni Creator ”
paraphrased, page 125.’
A reference to some of the documents dealing Ivith
Wilkes’s trial enables us to reconstruct enough of the actual
poem to determine which is a true version. At the Public
Record Office therb is a copy of the “ Information ” ex-
hibited by Sir Fletcher Norton, Attorney-General, which
‘ Add. MS. 30,868, f. 36.
* Add. MS. 30,868, f. 50.
* Letters to and from Mr, Wilkes (1769), p. 66.
* Index Librorum Prohibitorum, Pisaniis FTaxi, pp. 198**36.
* " A Genuine and Succinct Narrative,” Rev. Mr. Kidgell (Robson).
* The Plain Trtttk, Thomas Farmer, pp. iS~r6*
’ Add. MS. 30,885, f. 155. Mr. Watson points out further that an
original edition must be of turent^-four pages octavo. Notes and Queries^
*ith series, ix, 184.
444 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
contains innumarable extracts.* It shows that the “ Essay ”
began with the lines : — “ Awake, my Fanny, leave all
meaner things. This mom shall prove what rapture
brings.” ^ It quotes the notes, mentioned by Horace Walpole,
about the Virgin Mary and the ass. It contains all the
references mentioned by Kidgell and by Farmer. The same
extracts are given in the Wilkes MSS. at the Guildhall
Library and in “ Alexander Philipp’s Notes on the Case.” *
These documents confirm the conclusions of Mr. Ashbee,
and prove that Hotten’s edition, printed in 1871, and the
copy in the Dyce Library at the Victoria and Albert Museum
are genuine and complete copies from the original edition.’
All the original copies, printed at Wilkes’s press, seem
to have disappeared, though Mr. Ashbee declares that a
copy existed till late in the nineteenth century. The
original manuscript too has never yet been discovered.
So only ninety-four lines of the “ Essay ” are extant,
and there is no evidence that any more of it was ever
printed. At all events it is certain that Wilkes never
made another attempt.
^ Crown Roll, No. 248, Court of King’s Bench.
• Guildhall MS., *214, 4 ; Add. MS. 30, 885, ff. ^50-3.
• Index Librorum Prohibitorum, Pisanus Fraxi, pp. 198-236.
[ 4^1 exhaustive paper entitled “John Wilkes and 'The Essay on
Woman,’ ” written by Mr. Eric R. Watson, one of the most diligent and
sagacious of historical biographers, has appeared recently in Notes and
Queries, nth series, ix. (14th Feb., 1914, et seq.). This is by far the most
comprehensive monograph on the subject.]
APPENDIX II
JOHN WILKES’S AGE
T here appears to be some doubt as to the exact
age of Wilkes at the time of his death. On the
tablet in Grosvenor Chapel, South Audley Street,
it is said that he was bom on October 17, 1727,
O.S. Evidently the patriot himself believed, or wished
others to believe, that this was the date of his birth, for in
a letter to Home, published in The Public Advertiser, May
23, 1771, he informed the world: “The city election was
in March, 1768 ; I was forty the October preceding.” *
Still, although I have been unable to find his acte de nais-
satice, I am inclined to believe that he was bom two years
earliej than he imagined.
The date given in the pedigree drawn up by Sir Sherston
Baker is Octobeii 17, 1725. This agrees vwth the statement
of Robert Gibbs that Wilkes was “ not quite twenty-two
when he married ” on May 23, 1747, but controverts his
own declaration to Mrs. Stafford on March 14, 1778 : In
my non-age to please an indulgent father I married a woman
half as old again as myself.” ^ Moreover, it is stated dis-
tinctly in the licence granted at the Bishop of London's
office that Wilkes was twenty-one years of age upwards at
the time of his marriage, which would seem to put the
question beyond doubt. Since he underrated his own age
it is possible that he was exaggerating when he declared
that his wife was ten years his senior.
There are other corroborations of the earlier date. On
^ The Controversial Letters of Wilkes and Horne (177X), p. 5^*
History of Aylesbury ^ R* Gibbs, p. 236 ; Add. MS^ 30,880 B, f, 71^,
445
446 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
October 30, 1769, it was announced in The Public Advertiser:
“ Saturday being the birthday of John Wilkes, who entered
into the forty-fifth year of his age, the same was observed*
in most jparts of the Metropolis and its environs with every
testimony of joy.” At the time of his death the Morning
Herald declared that he was bom in 1725, and the Annual
Register confirmed this assertion by stating that he was in
his seventy-third year.* After the new style was adopted
his birthday, of course, was changed from October 17 to
October 28, on which latter day it was always celebrated.
* Morning Herald, Dec. 30, 1797 ; Annual Register (1797), p. 378.
APPENDIX III
POLLY WILKES
T he devoted Polly survived her father less than
five years. Her death came suddenly. On
March ii, 1802, she entertained a party of friends
at dinner, besides holding a large rout in the
evening. Feeling unwell, she retired soon after midnight,
and, becoming worse after reaching her room, was obliged to
ring for assistance. A doctor was summoned, but in less
than an hour she was dead. Her complaint was said to have
been cramp in the stomach.^
The admirable Joseph Paice communicated the news
to her friend, the Archbishop of Narbonne, in the following
naive epistle : “ Most Venerable Lord, The excellent Miss
Wilkes became Jmmortal at two o’clock. This happy
change took place after being ill about an hour and a half." *
The residue of her property was left to her cousin. Lady
Baker (nie Dinah Hayley), but there were legacies to ail
her nearest relatives. In order to carry out her Other’s
wishes she bequeathed £3400 to Harriet Wilkes and £2500
to Amelia Arnold. *
^or several years before her death the affection of her
throat had become chronic, and she could hardly make her
voice heard. There is unanimous testimony that she was
a woman of sweet disposition and charming manners, but
all are agreed that she was very plain. Once a curious
child asked Mr. Paice if Miss Wilkes was pretty. “ Very
1 J. Almon, v. *2 ; Morning Post, March 15, 180a, *
The Jerningham Papers, i. ao6-8.
447
448 LIFE QF JOHN WILKES
elegant, my love, extremely elegant,” replied the charitable
Joseph.*
Underneath her father’s tablet in Grosvenor Chapel*
the follojving epitaph was inscribed :
“in memory of MARY
THE ACCOMPLISHED AND ONLY CHILD OF
JOHN WILKES, ESQ. BY MARY HIS WIFE ;
SHE ENDED A LIFE OF UNAFFECTED PIETY
AND FILIAL AFFECTION ; MARCH 12 , l 802
MT. 53.”
* Family Pictures, Anne Manning {1861), p, 52.
ERRATA
Page 21, line 21, for fourteen ** read sixteen.”
26, line 16, omit ” great.”
26, line 20, omit ” a certain.”
40, line 2, for ” intentions ” read ” intention.”
55, line II, for ” Wellbore ” ” Welbore.”
69, line 28, for ” any ” read one.”
69, line 33, omit *' his.”
72, line 16, /yy ” every Englishman ” read ” all Englishmen.”
109, line 2, /oy ” subjects ” read “ subject.”
136, line II, for ” winter ” read ” winter’s.”
,, 139. iine 6, omit ” mere.”
,, 140, line 26, for ” Darby ” read “ Daily.”
,, i6i, line i, ” as.”
,, t8o, line 17, omit ” most,”
,, i8t, line 28, omit ” practically.”
,, 185, line 12, after ” Goodman’s Fields ” insert footnote : ” Mrs. Haylcy
was Mary Wilkes, previously married to Samuel Storke,
« now the wife of George Haylcy.”
,, 187, line 10, for “ the Guildhall ” read ” Guildhall.”
„ 21 1, note T, for “ Mead ” read " Meade.”
,, 217, last line, for ” Townshend ” read ” Townsend.”
„ 222, line 16, for ” this hero ” read ” their hero.”
„ 228, line 12, for ” not ” read ” nor.”
„ 24T, line 10, for ” election ” read representation.”
243, line 10, for ” tower ” read '' Tower.”
„ 275, line 7, for “ leadens ” read ” friend.”
„ 284, line 19, f<^ ” pendants ” read " pennantsf ’
„ 302, line 13, for ” arc ” read ” were.”
„ 340, line 25, for ” Jew bourgeois ” read ” bourgeois Jew,”
397, line 17, for ” from the Guildhall ” read ” from Guildhall. ’i
»• 397, line 23, omit ” still.”
„ 405, line 4, for " Apparently ” read ” Obviously.”
„ 418, line 21, for ” seem ” read ” seems.”
u 419, line 3, for "one public explanation” read "two public
explanaticftis.”
” .*429, line 10, for " conversion ” read " conversation.”
'» 45 1 » line 39, for " Darby ” read " Darly.”
*» 463> line 28, insert 194 before 254, 294 before 310.
•• 463. line 29, insert 380, 381, 384-385 after 376.
»* 463. line 33, insert 288 before 290.
»» 464, for “ John ” read "Mary.”
Genealogical Table, read :
Ann mar. —John Hickman
16 Dec. Barret, of
1792 ; died Parliament
25 April 18^3 Place
INDEX
Abingdon, Willoughby, 4th Earl
of, 172, 322
Adams, John, of Boston, Mass.,
244
Addington, Henry, Speaker of the
House of Commons, 424, 425
Address to the Gentlemen ^ Clergy^
and Freeholders of the County of
Middlesex y An, 206, 217
Adolphus, John, 403
Aix-la-Chapelle, ii
Albrighton, 3
Alderman for Farringdon Without,
Wilkes a^, 210, 21 1, 252-257,
260-263
Alembert, Jean le Rond d', 155
Allen, Captain Miles, 222
— Ralph, 25
— William, 200, 209
Amelia, Princess, 237
American Colonies, the interest
«ithey.displayed in Wilkes’s prose-
cution over ** No. 45,” 119;
their detestation of the Grafton
administration, 2(f5 ; the popu-
larity of John Wilkes in, 243,
244 ; the Committee of the Sons
of Liberty at Boston congratulate
Wilkes on his election for Middle-
sex ; the people of South Carolina
subscribe towards the payment
of Wilkes’s debts, 244 ; Wilkes’s
release from prison celebrated at
Boston, 249 ; Wilkes»presents a
remonstrance against the treat-
ment of the colonies, 290 ;
City’s protest against the An
can War, 291 ; Wilkes’s spee<
on the American question, 2
30? : during the American ^
Wilkes delivers ten speechei
favour of peace, 313-315;
example of Wilkes helps to hai
the American War of Indei
dence, 244-5, 407
Amiens, '88
Ancaster, Duchess of, 342
Andrews, Miles Peter, 322, 339
Angelo, Henry, 281, 345
Appuldurcomb, 385
Argyll, Archibald Campbell, 3rd
Duke of, 48, 330
Armagh, Archbishop of, 67, 117,
419
Armstrong, Dr. John, 18, 23, 73,
432, 433
Arnold, Amelia, 346, 356, 357, 381,
397, 398, 401, 437
— Harriet, natural daughter of
John Wilkes, 356, 381, 397, 401,
437
Arnould, Sophie, 158
Arundel, 398
Ashbee, H. S., 437, 443, 444
Astley, Sir Edward, 152
Auditor f The^ 77, 81
Augusta, Princess of Wales, mother
of George III, 71, 73, 75, 76, 83
Autobiography of John Wilkes ^ 164,
164 w, 165, 394-5, 395ii..423,423 «.
Aylesbury, 9, 10, 16, 18-27, 39,
42-46, 55-57, 1 18, 1 19, 146, 152,
229, 299, 301, 430
Aylesworth, Mrs., 47
Ayscough, Captain George Edward,
Bacon, Anthony, 146
Baddeley, Sophia, 219
Bagshot Heath, 79, 184
Baker, Robert, 370, 402
Balfe, Mrs., 97
— Richard, 95, 96, 117, 151, 170
Ballard, Lucy, 339
Barber, Francis, 51
Barnard, John, 247, 294-296
— Mrs., 247, 294-296, 427
Barr6, Colonel Isaac, 129, 244
Barrel!, Savage, 293
Barrington, William Wildman, 2nd
Viscount, 198, 200, 215
Barry, Sally, 396
Bates, Dr. Benjamin, 49
Bath, 23, 25, 41, 42, 270, 319-321,
347. 348. 350, 353-355, 360 •
Baxter, Andrew^ii-13,
449 , * 2 F
450
LIFE OF JOHN, WILKES
Beardmore, Arthur, 83, 92, 103,
183, 240
Beauchamp, Viscount, afterwards
2nd Marquis of Hertford, 168
Beauclerk, Topham, 336
Beaumarchais, Pierre Auguste
Caron dl, 322
Beckford, William, Lord Mayor, 1 29,
187, 188, 207, 238, 249-251, 299
Bedford, John, 4th Duke of, 59, 65,
87, 89
Beefsteak Club, 41, 48, 77, 125,
134, 174, 253, 322
Beete, Madame, 47
Bellas, George, 240
Berkeley, Colonel Norborne, 79
Berne, 340
Bernis, Abb6 de, 71, 73
Berwick-upon-Tweed, 27, 32-36
Bisset, George Maurice, 385
Blackmore, Robert, 94, 95, 97, 99,
102
Blackstone, Dr. William, 213, 215,
216, 225
Bland, Hungerfoid, 10
Blantyre, 8th Lord (Walter Stuart),
13
Bolland, James, sheriff’s officer, 273
Bologna, 163, 165, 166
Bolton, Charles Powlett, 5th Duke
of, 104
Bon mots by Wilkes, see under John
Wilkes
Boston, Mass,, 119 243, 244,
249, 370
Boswell, James, 171, *323-338, 389
Boulogne, 88, i6o
Brading, 385
Bragenham, 16
BreiAford, 190, 191, 217, 221-223
Brereton, Julia, 358
— Major William, 270
Brewster, Thomas, 23
Bright, 7* Franck, 406
Brighton, 255, 319
Bristol, 270
British Museum, 312
Briton^ the, 67
Brocklesby, Dr. Richard, 141, 442,
443
Bromley, Kent, 248, 274
Brougham, Henry, Lord, 404-405
Brown, Matthew, Wilkes’s servant,
88, 142, 162*^
— Nancy, 322
Brunner, Mme., 340
Bull, Frederick, Sheriff and Lord
Mayor, 266, 270, 274, 279, 280,
282, 284, 286, 290, 306, 364, 411
. — ' ^ c
Burke, Edmund, 86, 177, 216, 287
298, 305» 310, 318, 413, 417, 420’
421, 431
Burnaby, William, Captain, R.N.^
379
Burnell, Mr., 254
Burton, Dr., headmaster of Win-
chester School, 81
Bute, John Stuart, 3rd Earl of, 57-
59, 63-67, 71, 73, 75, 76, 83, 85,
87, 89, 1 12, 1 16, 139, 149, 159,
205, 333,415, 416, 421,422
Byng, George, 315, 375
— George the younger, 387-389
Caius Valerius Catullus, Recensuit
Johannes Wilkes^ 385, 386
Calais, 88, 142, 162, 184
Cambridge, 259
Camden, I^rd Chancellor and ist
Earl. See also Pratt, Lord Chief
Justice Sir Charles, 195, 204, 231,
245, 250
Campbell, Alexander, 34
— Lord Frederick, ^6
Canterbury, 255
— Archbishop of, Hon. Fred-
erick Cornwallis, 289
Carey, George, the printer, 120
Carlyle, Alexander, 12, 72
Carpentier, Madame, 87-91
— M., 89-91
Carrington, Nathan, 96, 129, 14a
Casanova, Giacomo, 341, 342, 428
Case of the last Election for the
County of Middlesex ^ The^ 227
Castle Rising, 300
Chamberlain of London, Wilkes as,
307, 308, 312, 3I3 i 335, 370-375,
389, 399, 418
Chantereine, Mme. de, 252
Charpillon, Julie, 342
— Marianne Genevieve, 339-347
— Rose, 340
Chassagnf, Mile., 176
Chastillon, Duchesse de, 383 ,
Chatham, ist Earl of. m
Pitt, William, 178, 179, 182, 204,
205, 231, 245, 246, 250, 299, 30J
305, 374, 413, 4M, 431-433, 44®,
441
Chesterfield, PhiUp Dormer Stao-
hope, 4th Earl of, 330
Chisholme, constable, xoo
Church, Benjamin, jun., of
hlass. 244
Chutchiil, Charles, 40 *»., 67. 74^2'
G 81, 89 98, IM. * 54 >
161, 164, 168, 169, 4^*> 434*^43/
c
.INDEX
451
Churchill, John, 183, 240, 248, 255,
258, 265, 321, 432
Clarke, George, 209
— Rev. Samuel, 9
Clinton, Lord Thomas, 287
Clive, Robert, afterwards Baron, 54
Cobbett, William, 420
Cobden, Richard, 414, 417
Cobham, 398
Collins, Henry Lovibond, 49 «.
Cologne, II
Constitutional Society, The, 265
Conway, General, 129, 148, 231
Cooke, George, 189, 190, 192, 209
Copyright Act, 312
Corday, Charlotte, 392
Cork, Edmund, 7th Earl of, 98
Cornwallis, Charles, ist Marquis of,
315
Corradini, Gertrude Maria, 163-
166, 168, 169, 171, i72i 176, 395
Cotes, Humphrey, 99, 103, 136, 142,
144, 152-1541 i57i 160, 161, 175,
176, 181, 183, 197, 240, 242, 255,
258, 2751.287, 293, 294, 432, 434>
442
Cowley, John, 372, 389, 390
Craggs, James, the elder, 53
Crosby, Brass, Lord Mayor of
London, 261, 262, 265, 275, 286
Croz, Prince de, 88
Cruden, Alexander, 194
(Sorry. Michael, 115, 117, 120, 135,
151, 206, 211, 442
Cust, Sir John, Speaker of the
House of Commoi;^, 127, 130, 145,
^213,215
Cutler, Samuel, 307
Darby, Mathias, printseller, 140
Dashwood, Sir Francis, 48-50, 6 ^
-65, 76, 134
Hashwood-King, Sir John, 49
Dayrell, Edmund, 379
Delaval, Sir Francis Bl^e, 70
tTIi
OcII^John, 19, 22, 25, 35, 39, 4;
^55, 56, 99,157. 396, 434
Devonshire, William Cavendisl
4th Duke of, 76, 82, HI, 113
^ — 5th Duke of, 275
J^bdm /^omas, 372, 373
Diderot, Deni^ 155
Duke, Charles Wentworth, 406, 40'
r..?37
Di Ion, Mr., 168
Duly, Charles, 324, 326-328, 33:
335 (f
Edward, 324, 326-328, 333, 33
Dingley, Charles, 218, 222, 240
Disraeli, Benjamin, afterwards Earl
of Beaconsfield, 407
Dixon, Francis, 259
Dodd, William, the forger, 293
Doddington, Geo. Bubb, 49
Douglas, James, M.If., uncle of
John Wilkes, 4
— Rev. John, 62, 63
Dover, 142, 162, 177, 255
Dowdeswell, William, 12, 129, 207
Dryden, John, 331
Duflield, Sir Francis, 49 n,
Dufort, Mile., 181
Dun, Lieut. Alexander, 140, 141
Duncan, Dr., 142
Dunning, John, afterwards ist
Baron Ashburton, 256
Dyce, Alexander, 438
Dyson, Jeremiah, 84, 216, 227
Edinburgh, 323
Edwards, Thomas, 22, 25, 38
Effingham, Thomas, 2nd Earl of,
322
Egremont, Charles Wyndham, 2nd
Earl of, 64, 92-96, 99-1037 ii3»
117, 123-125, 139
Elliot, Sir Gilbert, 129
Ellis, Wellbore, 55, 56
Entinck, Rev. John, 83, 92
Eon, Chevalier d’, 154, 236, 273,
379
Esdaile, James, 282
Essay on Woman, An, 37, 38, 66,
67, 115-1^7, 120, I2I, 133-135,
151, 159, 180, 182, 202, 203, 212,
215, 216, 396, 406, 418, 427, 428,
Eittcal^itaracters of Theopitrastus,
The, 386
Fadan, William, 120, 121
Fair Trial on the Important Question,
A : or the Rights of Election
Asserted, 232
Fall of Mortimer, The, 83, 333,
422
False Alarm, The, 226, 325, 326
Farmer, Thomas, 120, 121, 443,
444
Field, Captain, 385
Fielding, Sir John, 114, 341, 363
Fitzgerald, Percy, %o6
Fitzherbert, William, 144, 174-178,
185, 258, 432, 433
Florence, 168
Foley, Mr., banker in Paris, 88, 89^
90, 242
452 LIFE OF JOHN, WILKES
Fontainebleau ) 88
Foote, Samuel, 330
Forbes, Captain John, 123-125, 133,
158
Fountain, Peter, 307
Fox, Charles James, 223, 288, 317,
318, 373-*37S, 377. 384, 387, 4^9,
413,414
— Henry, afterwards ist Baron
Holland, 31, 35, 39, 44. 52, 64,
76, 82, 86. See also Holland,
Baron.
France, Wilkes’s first visit to, 87-
90; his French friends, Baron
d'Holbaph, Helvetius Diderot,
d’Alembert, 155, 156 ; his in-
fluence on the pioneers of the
French Revolution, J. B. Suard,
157, 407 ; Comte de Lauranguais,
Pierre Goy, 158
Franciscans, see Monks of St.
Francis,
Frederick, King of Prussia, 54
Freedom of the City, 186
Freedom of the Press, 260-263,
409-10
Fulham, 252
Garboldisham, 259, 276
Gardiner, Mrs., 269, 339, 367
Gamier, Mrs., 342
Garrick, David, 323, 329, 33o,
397
Goeetteer, The, 260
Geneva, 172
Geoflrin, Mme., 157 •>
George II, 44, 55, 334
George III, 57~59, 62, 63, 82-86, 92,
93, 114, 125, 131, 133, 138, 141,
145^ M7, 159, 175, 178, 182, 186,
197, 204, 205, 212, 214, 216, 230,
231, 246, 251, 257, 261, 262, 278,
287, 290, 291, 299, 300, 309, 310,
315-317. 360, 362, 373, 375, 376,
383 “ 385 , 392, 410, 420, 431
— Prince of Wales, afterwards
George IV, 376, 383, 384
Germain. See Sackville, Lord
George, afterwards Germain and
ist Viscount Sackville.
Gibbon, Edward, 65, 66
Gibbs, Robert, 445
Gladstone, W. E., 406
Gloucester, BisI op of. See War-
burton, Rev. William, afterwards
Bish^, &c.
Glynn, Sergeant, 105-107, 138, 197,
^ 202, 209, 224, 240, 236, 258, 278,
282, 285, 315, 376
Gordon, Colonel and Mrs., 379
— Lord George, 360, 361, 366
— Riots, the, 360-366, 370
Gould, Mr. Justice, 270
Goy, Pierre, 124, 158
Grafton, Augustus Henry, 3rd Duke
of, 104, 1 12, 173, 177-180, m,
204-206, 212, 215, 245, 246,417
Green, John Richard, 406
Gregory, John, 72
Grenville, George, 26, 27, 32, 44,
45, 64, 82, 91, 93, 95, 98, 125,
128,130, 131, 139, 140. 173, 186,
205, 212, 215, 2i6, 245, 297
405
— Henry, 57
— Lady Hester, 53
Grose, Sir Nash, 385
Grosvenor, Mrs., 164
Hague, The, 184, 185
Halifax, George Montagu Dunk,
2nd Earl of, 64, 92-96, 99-103,
113-115, 117, 139, 160, 180, 186,
248 ^
Hamburg, 394
Hamilton, Duchess of, 193 .
Hamilton, Mr. and Mrs., 347
Hampden, John, 413
Hardwicke, Philip Yorke, ist Earl
of, 31,92, 100, 103, no, 114
Harford, Mrs., 270
Harley, Thomas, Lord Maypr, iS3,
191
Harris, Captain, Adjutant of Buck-
inghamshir^l^litia, 79, 80
Harrow, 281
Harwich, 184
Hassall, Lionel, 120, X2i
Hastings, Warren, 374, 377-379
Hawkins, Caesar, 141
Hay, Mr., of Drummelgier, n. *3
Hayley, Dinah, afterwards Lady
Baker, niece of John Wilkes, 37^»
394, 43i
Hayley, George, brother-in-law 0
John Wilkes, 243, 286, 292f 3^
Hayley, Mrs. (Mary), sister of JoW
Wilkes, 185, 286,292.29^ 3^,
369, 370. 394* See ai$o WuKcs,
•Mary, and Storke, Mary
Heaton, Sarah, afteryrards Wing**
and mother of John Wilkes# Set
Wilkes, Sarah
Heberden, Dr., X4;^i ^ ^ j
Hell-fire Club. See Monks Of
Francis
Helvetus, Claude Adrian, rjl
Henley, Mrs., 234> 23a / r
lINDEX
Hertford, 8 *
Hewson, Rev. Mr., 385, 429
Hogarth, William, 77, 78, 108, n6,
1 17, 427, 442
Holbach, Paul Heinrich, Baron d*,
I3» 16, 17, 90, 155, 156
Holland, Henry Fox, ist Baron.
See also Fox, Henry, 223
Hollis, Thomas, 426
Home, John, 331
Hopkins, Benjamin, 308, 312, 313
— Mr., M.P., 102
— Richard, 49 n.
Horne, Rev. John,afterwardsTooke,
176, 178, 197, 238, 240, 241, 258,
263-267, 270, 387, 432, 433, 443
Hume, David, 33
Hyde, Justice, 363
Inchiquin, William O’Brien, 4th
Earl of , 322
Introduction to the History of Eng-
landy An, 422
Inveraray, 48, 330
Irnham, Simon Luttrell, ist Baron,
219, 220, 321
Isabella, Queen, 73
Ischia, 171
Janssen, Sir Stephen, 307
Jennings, Samuel, 120, 121, 135
Jenyns, Soame, 338
JdSnsem, Dr. Samuel, 38, 51, 72, 76,
171, 226, 324-338, 3 A 412, 429
— William, 71
Joiners’ Company, r@6, 284
Jones, Mary, 268
— William, 313
“ Junius,” 227, 236, 237, 266-268,
420-422
Kearsley, George, 67, 71, 94, 95,
“n?.* ” 7 , 151, 170, 202, A42
Kellie, Thomas Alexander Erskine,
6th Earl of, 322, 354 •
Kendal, C^tain, 292
Kenn^tt, Brackley, Lord Mayor,
282, 362, 364, 365
Kent, Mr., 152
--Benjamin, of Boston, Mass.,
Kidgell, Rev. John, 121, 439, 443,
King s Bench Prison, Wilkes com-
niitted to, 197 ; guarded by the
military for fear of the mob, 198 ;
a collision with the mob. 199, 200;
the easy conditions or confine-
233; description of tie
prison, 234, 235 ; the delicades
453
sent in, 235, 236 ; visits from
ladies, 237, 247 ; Wilkes released
from, 248
Kippis, Rev. Andrew, 311
Ladbroke, Sir Robert,^i88
Lauchoix, M., 281
Lauraguais, Louis Fran9ois de
Brancas, Comte de, 158, 320, 322
Leach, Dryden, 72, 92, 94, 97, 115
Lee, Arthur, 328, 333
— J., K.C., 425
Leeson, Rev. Matthew, 8-14, 16
Legge, Henry Bilson, Chancellor of
the Exchequer, 39, 44*
Lennox, Lady Sarah, 86
L’Etoile, Mile., 122
Letter from a Member of Parliament
on the Middlesex Elections, A , 232
Letter to Dr* Blackstone, 225
— to Lords Halifax and Egre-
mont, A, 11^
— to Samuel Johnson, A, 232, 325
— to the Author of** The Question
Stated,** 225
— to the Duke of Grafton, 179, 184,
421, 439, 440
— to the Right Hon. George Gren-
ville, A, 232
— to the Worthy Electors of the
Borough of Aylesbury, A, 159, 421,
r '*38
Lettsom, Dr., 333
Lewis, Sir Watkin, 254, 270, 275, 279
Leyden, 10-12, 14, 15, 72, 155, 184
Li^ge, II
Lichfield, 331
Linley, Elizabeth, 270, 358
LinOT, Mary, 271
— Thomas, 270 *
Lisbon, 125
Littlehampton, 294
Lives of the Poets, Dr. Johnson’s, 337
Lloyd, Robert, 49 »., 161, 162, 434
London Evening Post, The, 261
Lord Mayor of London, Wilkes as,
275» 279, 280, 282-285, 288-296,
306, 307, 316, 325, ^8. For
Other Lord Mayors, see Beckford,
Bull, Crosby, Harley, Kennett,
Nash, Townshend, Trecothick
Louis XVI, 392
Luttrell, Colonel Henry Lawes, 219-
225, 227» 228, 2f9-25i, 279, 321
— James, 288
Lynn, 259
Lyons, 165, 166
Lyttelton, George, ist Baron, 134^
aoi ^ ^
454 life of JOHN WILKES
Lyttelton, Thomas, second Baron,
298
Macaulay, Mrs. Catherine, 238,
240. 321, 332
— Thomas Babbington, Lord, 405
Macleane, Lkuchlin, 177, 178, 242,
,258, 432, 433
Macreath, Robert, 300
M‘Quirk, Edward, 209
Mahon, Charles, Viscount, after-
wards third Earl Stanhope, 286
Maidstone, 255
Mainwaring, William, 375, 388
Malagrida, «259, and see Shelburne,
Earl
Maltby, William, 438
Mansfield, William Murray, first
Baron, afterwards Earlof, 31, 104,
135, 150, 151, 174. 179, 195, 196,
201, 213, 363, 409, 431, 432, 439
Marat, Jean Paul, 392
March, William Douglas, third Earl
of, afterwards fourth Duke of
Queensbury (Old Q), 121, 207, 439
Marli, 88
Marseilles, 172
Martin, Samuel, 132, 135-137
Matthews, Charles, 372
Mawbey, Sir Joseph, 206, 207, 240,
, 265, 275
Mead, Dr., 4
Meade, Mary, afterwards Wilkes.
See also Wilkes, Mary, wife of
John Wilkes, 9, 10, 16, 17, 445
— Mrs. John, mother of Mrs.
Wilkes, 9, 15, 18, 41, 46, 167, 210,
234) 369
— William, 16
Medm^nham Abbey, 49-51, 54, 79
Memoir of Johr^ Wilkes. See Auto-
biography
Menin, 125
Meredith, Sir William, 146, 147, 150,
225, 268
Middlesex Journal^ The^ 260
Middleton, Dr., 142
Milan, 168
Militia, 48, 65, 74, 83, 113, 248, 264
Miller, John, 261
— Lady, 423
— Mr., of Bath Easton, 335
Mirabeau, Honors Gabriel l^queti,
Comte de, 412^
Molineux, Betty, 276, 358, 379
— Crisp, 259, 276, 379
— George, 276, 379
i-- Miss, 277, 358, 379
— ^76, 379
Molineux, Peggy, 276, 358
Monitor f The^ 67, 71, 83
Monks of St. Francis, 48-51, 54, 64,
76, 125, 134, 427
Montagu, Mrs., 398
Montpellier, 176
More, Hannah, 398
Mortimer, Rodger, first Earl of
March, 73
Mountmorres, Hervey Redmond
Morres, second Viscount, 286
Muilman, Mrs., 356
Murphy, Arthur, 77, 81
Murray, Fanny, 37, 116, 441, 442
Naples, 168, 169, 171
Narbonne, Archbishop of, 437
Nash, William, Lord Mayor, 273
Necker, Jacques, 322
Needham, Mr., 168
Nelson, Horatio, Lord, 399
— Mrs., 356
Nesbitt, Robert, M.D., uncle of
John Wilkes, 4
— Sophy, cousin of Jehn Wilkes,
21
Neville, Mr., 89
Newcastle, Thomas Peham Holies,
first Duke of, 30-32, 39, 44) 59,
63, no, 139
New Foundling Hospital for Wilt
the, 423
Newport, Isle of Wight, 396 • •
New York, 394
Nichols, John, 385, 402
Norfolk, Edwafird Howard, ninth
Duke of, 322
North, Frederick, Lord, afterwards
second Earl of Guilford, 128, 131,
132, 21 1, 246, 287, 290, 299-30*)
306, 373-375, 4*7) 43* . .
North Briton, The, started in opposi-
tion to the Earl of Bute's BritoXi
the reason for its title, 67, 7* ;
Wilkes reviles the Scotch in, 72 )
Lord Bute compared to Mortoer
and the Princess of to
Queen Isabella, 73-74 J
chill assists Wilkes upon it, 74|
75 ; its popularity, 75 J
the leaders hostile to it, 75) TJ#
some of the public character ww
were lampooned in it,
attack on Hogarth, 78 ; n oaW
on Earl Talbot lehds to
78-81; denies an impm
which Murphy had niade »
§1uditor, 81 ; no issue ag
for three weeks, 91 ; Bttam
.INDEX
455
King's Speech, 91, 92 a warrant
issued for the arrest of the author
and publisher, 93 ; Balfe con-
fesses that Wilkes employed him
to print it, 96 ; Wilkes destroys
the copy of ** No. 45 ” and dis-
places type of the new number,
97 ; a reprint issued from Wilkes's
private press, 117, ii8; the de-
bate on “ No. 45 in the House,
130-132 ; ordered to be burnt by
thecommon hangman, 132 ; would
have been speedily proceeded
against in these days, 139; a
mob prevents its public burning,
141, 188; Wilkes’s trial for re-
printing it, 150, 151 ; carriages
and house-doors marked with
No. 45 ” during the Middlesex
election, 191, 192, 194 ; its prac-
tice of printing names in full,
409 ; Wilkes’s application for the
Governorship of Canada suggests
his willingness to stop it, 416;
an estinjate of Wilkes’s writing
in, ^22
Northington, Robert Henley, ist
Earl of. Lord Chancellor, 133
Northumberland, Duchess of, 287
•— 1st Duke of, Sir Hugh Smith-
son, afterwards Percy, 192
Norton, Sir Fletcher, Solicitor-
«3«Gei4eral, and Speaker of the House
of Commons, 96, 128, 131, 148,
^79, 443
Nuthall, Thomas, 1:89
Observations on the Papers relative
to the Rupture with Spain ^ 61-63,
Oglander, Sir William, 385
Olantighe, 255
Oliver, Richard, 239, 240, 253, 258,
261-263, 265-267, 272, 275, 277,
I,?
OnslDw, Colonel George, 260, 432,
433
Otto, Mary, 247
391, 402, 437
Palmerston, Henry Temple, 2nd
Viscount, 122
Pancoucke, Charles, 157
Panchaud, M., banker at Paris,
n •
Panton, Thomas, 342
Paris, 87-90, n8, 142-162, 172, 173,
175, i77» 179, 184, 252, 281, 322,
^ 340, 345, 392
Parliament, the state of parties in
when Wilkes contested Berwick,
28-32 ; Wilkes’s petition to,
against his opponeiJt's election,
33“35 1 Wilkes returned for Ayles-
bury to, 43-45 : not at first im-
pressed by Wilkes, 52, 53 ; the
Pitt-Newcastle administration in,
53, 54 J the fall of Pitt, and the
state of Parliament in the first
years of George III, 58-60, 63-65 ;
a change of leaders ip the Com-
mons, 82 ; the King’s attempt to
subjugate the Commons, 84-86 ;
resignation of Lord Bute, 87 ;
Grenville appointed Prime Min-
ister, 91 ; prosecution of The
North Briton by, 92-109; orders
Wilkes to the Tower, 102 ; effects
of Wilkes’s imprisonment on,
I lo-i 1 3 ; its action over the Essay
on Woman, 120, 121, 125, 126,
I33“I35 I and The North Briton,
127-133, 137-140 ; expels Wilkes,
146 ; debate on general warrants
in, 1 47-1 50 ; the Whigs in power,
Wilkes opens negotiations with
the Government, seeking a place,
173 ; they offer him £1000 a year
terminable at a change of Govern-
ment, 174 ; which he finally ac-
cepts, 175 ; Parson Horne’s com-
ment on their object, 176 ; I-ord
Grafton, Prime Minister, 177;
Wilkes publishes a letter to him,
179 ; Wilkes aspires to represent
the City in, 183, 185-187 > and is
defeated, 188 ; Middlesex election,
188-190 ; Wilkes is returned at
head of the poll, 1 9 1, 1 92 : rumours
that Wilkes would be expelled,
204; the unpopularity of the
Government at home and in
America, 205 ; Wilkes petitions
Parliament, 206 ; the debate in
the House, 207, 208, 211-212 ;
events at a Middlesex bye-elec-
tion make the Government more
unpopular, 209; Wilkes is ex-
peflea, 217 ; three times Wilkes's
election is declared void, 218, 219 ;
the Middlesex electors decide to
return Wilkes again at every elec-
tion so long as the House expels
him, 220 ; once more expels Wilkep,
223 ; the Opposition now ready
456 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
to take up Wilkes's case, 224 ; the
problem of the Middlesex election
m its relation to, 225-232 ; Lord
Grafton resigns and Lord North
forms a Government, 246 ; Chat-
ham raises the question of revers-
ing the adjudication of Wilkes’s
inc^acity to sit, 250 ; complaints
in rarliament of newspaper re-
ports of speeches in the House
and the City’s dealings with
arrested persons lead to the
imprisonment of Crosby, and
Oliver, 260-263 ; the house ad-
journs for the day upon which
Wilkes retuses to appear when
summoned for the third time, 263 ;
the Government in taking part
against Wilkes in the election for
sheriff did him a service, 265, 266 ;
the sheriffs send the summons to
attend in his place in the House
to Wilkes instead of to Lut-
trell, 279 ; Wilkes regarded with
little more favour by Opposition
than by Ministry, 298 ; a more
intimate relationship between re-
presentative and electors, 299 ;
Wilkes’s speeches on the Ameri-
can question in, 302-305 ; Re-
form Bill introduced by Wilkes
in, 305, 306; Wilkes’s activity
in the House of Commons, 309-
315; the causes of Wilkes’s lack
of success in, 316 ; the record of
Wilkes’s expulsion extmnged, 317;
both Houses besieged by the Gor-
don Rioters, 361, 362; Wilkes
protests in the Commons, 365,
366 ; Rilkes again returned for
Middlesex, 375; the impeach-
ment of Warren Hastings, 377-
379; the Regency Bill passed,
384 ; dissolution, 387
Parliamentary elections in which
Wilkes was a candidate —
Aylesbury, 39-46, 55-57
Berwick-upon-Tweed,.27, 32-36
City of London, 185-188
Middlesex, 188-194, 217-232,
285-288, 313, 375, 387-389
Pelham, Henry, 28, 29, 39, 230
Pembroke, Henry Herbert, tenth
Earl of, 70 .
Percy, Hugh, Earl, afterwards
second Duke of Northumberland,
287
Petrie, Sam, 393
Pe^orth, 398
Philipps, Alexander, 99, 103, 144,
437, 444
Pitt, William, afterwards Earl of
Chatham, 32, 34-36, 39, 42, 44,
45, 53, 54, 57-59, 62, 63, 66, 75^
78, 85, 86, 112, 125, 127-131, 135,
137, 139, 148, 374, 413,421,434,
440. See also Chatham, Earl of
— William, the younger, 374, 375,
377. 383-386, 403, 413
Political Register ^ Almon’s, 185
Pompadour, Mme. de, 71, 73
Ponthieu, Elizabeth de.' See
Wilkes, Elizabeth, sister-in-law
of John Wilkes
Ponton, Daniel, 208
Pope, Alexander, 421
Porson, Richard, 386
Portland, William Henry Cavendish
Bentwick, third Duke of , 1 1 1 , 249,
275
Potter, Thomas, 23-27, 34, 36-38,
40, 42, 49 n., 66, 67, 159, 180, 437-
Poyntz, Mrs., 89
Pratt, Lord Chief Justice Sir
Charles, afterwards Lord .Cam-
den, 95, 100, 102, 104-107, 138,
139, 174* Camden, Lord
Press-warrants, 256, 310
Price, Chase, M.P., 321, 339
— Dr. Richard, 31 1
Priestley, Dr. Joseph, 31 1
Procter, Sir William, 189-191
Public Advertiser y The^ 180, 183, 185,
21 1, 264, 266, ^69, 302, 305, 446
Pursuits of Literature^ by Mathias,
400
Question Stated, The, 225
Rae, W. Fraser, 406
Rainsford, Major, 102, 104
Reading, 83
Residences of Wilkes, see under
John Wilkes
Reynolds, John, 240, 242, 247, ^8,
274
— Mrs., 274
Richmond, .167, 286
Ridley, Major, 172
Rigby, Richard, 308
Roach, Captain David, 22i» 223, 292
Robinson, Jacob, 71 ^ .
Rockingham, Charles Watsda
Wentworth, second Marijnia 01,
1 12, 173-179, 181, 205, 240,
2«, 298, 317, 318, 373» 4*6^ ,
Rodney, Admiral Lord, 377 »
INDEX
Rogers, J. E. Thorold, 405
Rolinde, Mme. de, 153
Rome, 168, 169, 172
Romilly, Sir Samuel, 412
Rotterdam, 185
Rouen, 88
Rousseau, Jean-Jacques, 145, 156,
394. 395
Royal Society, 41
Russell, Lord John„405, 406.
Sackville, Lord George, afterwards
Germain, first Viscount Sack-
ville, 1 17, 148, 304, 419, 442
St. Denis, 88
— George’s Fields, Massacre of,
199, 200
Si. James's Chronicle, The, 208, 214
St. Omer, 370
Sainte-Foix, Mile., 122
Sandown, 379~3fi2, 385, 395, 398
Sandwich, John Montagu, fourth
Earl of, 49, 69, 125, 126, 133, 134,
207, 432 . ^ „
Sandys, Sai|iuel, first Baron, 134
Saville, Sir George, 129, 146, 279, 298
Sawbridge, John, 207, 218, 223, 238-
240, 253, 255-258, 263, 265, 267,
280, 282, 286
Scotsmen, popular dislike of, 72, 73,
75
Scott, Major John, 425
Selwyn, George, 130
Settle, Elkanah, 331
Shakespeare, William, 330
S^Win, 379, 385 •
Sharpe, William, 396, 434
Shebbeare, Dr.. 334
Shelburne, William Petty, second
Earl of, afterwards first Marquis
of Lansdowne, 112, 178, 212, 231,
245, 259, 264, 265, 275, 278-280,
298, 318, 373, 374, 398
Sheghard, Mrs., Miss Wilkes's maid,
Sherbrooke, Richard, uncle to Mrs.
Sheridan, R. B., 271
Sheriff of London, Wilkes as, 252,
264-270, 272-273
Shine, John, 256
Suva, Isaac Fernandes, 45, 242, 264
Smith, Adam, 41 1
Catherine, housekeeper to
Wilkes, and by whom he had a
son, 164
^ Smith, Jack, natural son of
394
^mith, Mrs., 379
457
Smollett, Tobias, 47, 51, 67, 72, 77,
433
Sons of Liberty, Boston, Mass., 244
Speaker of the House of Commons.
See Cust, Sir John, Norton, Sir
Fletcher, Addington, Henry
rumour that •Wilkes will
propose Robert Macreath for,
300
Speech of a Right Honourable Gentle^
man. The, 232
Spooner, Betty, 24
Stafford, Mrs., 347-355, 358, 360,
427, 445
— WilUam, 347, 349, 353-355
Stanhope, Lovell, loo, 103
— Sir William, 49, 55
Stapleton, Sir Thomas, 49
Stephens, Rev. John, 20, 22
Stevenson, John Hall, 49 n.
Stewart, Dr., of Aylesbury, i8 «.,
20 n.
Stone, George. See Armagh, Arch-
bishop of
Storke, Mrs. (Mary), sister of John
Wilkes, 21. See also Wilkes,
Mary, and Hayley, Mrs.
— Samuel, brother-in-law of John
Wilkes, 21, 292
Strange, Lord, 218
Stuart, Mr., 90
Suard, Jean Baptiste, 157, 322, 434
— Mme., 157
Sublime Society of Beef Steaks.
See Beefsteak Club
Supporters of the Bill of Rights,
240-242, 243 247, 248, 257,
258, 265, 267, 274, 275, 294, 298,
^ 307. 417 ,
Swift, Jonathan, 420, 421 •
Swinburne, Henry, 320, 379, 397
— Mrs., 320, 379
Talbot, William, first Earl, 78-81,
184
Taylor, Robert, 32
Temple, Richard Grenville-Temple,
Earl, 26,-27, 32, 34, 39, 44» 57,
65, 66, 76-78, 80, 83, 91, 98, 103,
104, 108, 111-113, 115, 117-119,
134. 135, 143, 144, 152. 153, 160,
178, 179, 184, 189, 215. 224, 379
— Lady, 69, 80, 423
Thame, 8, 9 #
Thomas, Mr., Marshal of the King’s
Bench Prison, 21 1, 212
Thompson, Captain Edward, 437
Thrale, Henry, 168
— Mrs., 333, 397
458 LIFE OF JOHN .WiLKES
Thurlow, Edward, first Baron,
Lord ChancjpIIor, 278, 384, 385
Thurot, Francois, 335
Tickell, Richard, 271
Tooke, J. H. See Horne, Rev. John
Topham, Edward, 322
Toulon, 172^
Towler, Kitty, 339
Town and County Magazine ^ 302
Townsend, James, Alderman and
Lord Mayor, 217, 223, 239, 240,
253, 257-259, 263-265, 267, 272,
275, 276-278, 282, 325, 398, 433,
434
Townshendj Charles, 13, 128, 129,
148
Trecothick, Barlow, Alderman and
Lord Mayor, 187, 188
Trevanion, Mr. John, 248
Trevelyan, Sir George Otto, 406
Tringham, engraver, 67
Tunbridge Wells, 24, 255
Turin, 166
Turrick, 22
Tyburn, 268
Udney, Mr., British Consul at
Venice, 163
United States. See American
Colonies
Upwell, near Wisbech, 259
Utrecht, 13
Vallerie, La, Miss Wilkes’s maid,
162, 166, 234
Valli^re, Mme. de. Chastillon,
Duchesse de
Vane, Lady, 174
Van, Charles, 288
Vaughan, Samuel, 240
Venice, 163, 324
Voltaire, Fran9ois Marie Arouet de,
172, 392, 395
Vomero, 169, 171, 172
Wade, Jenny, 355» 356
Waldegrave, Admiral, 399
Walpole, Horace, 70, 76, 82, 130,
148, 220, 358, 423, 438
— Sir Robert, 28-30, 230, 413
Wakh, Mr., M.P., 102
Warburton, Rev. William, after-
wards Bishop of Gloucester, 22,
25, 38, 1 16, 11^133-135,419
Warren, Joseph, of Boston, Mass.,
244
Warton, Dr. Joseph, 429
>gatson, James, 97, 99, 102
-John Selby, 403
Watson, Thomas, 32, 33
Webb, Philip Carteret, 96, 100, 102-
104, 116, 120, 125 n, 126, 213
Wedderbum, Alexander, afterwards
first Baron Loughborough and
Earl of Roslyn, 256
West Wickham Park, 48
Weston, Edward, 99, 100
Weymouth, Thomas Thynne, third
Viscount, 1981 208, 212, 214,
215
Wheble, John, 260, 261
Whiston, Rev, William, 9
Whitaker, Sergeant William, 221,
223
Whitehead, Paul, 48, 49
Wildman, Mr., 178
Wilkes, Ann, sister of John Wilkes,
21
— Ann, wife of Heaton ^Wilkes,
sister-in-law of John Wilkes, 167
— Deborah, afterwards Nesbitt,
aunt of John Wilkes, 4
— Edward, great-grandfather of
John Wilkes, 3 •
— Elizabeth, sister-in-kw of John
Wilkes, 21
— Heaton, brother of John Wilkes,
8, 56, 144, 152, 159, 162, 166, 167,
176, 180, 184, 185, 197, 366, 394»
402, 440
— Israel, brother of John Wilkes,
5, 21, 167, 366, 393 • ^
father of John Wilkes, 4-7,
10, 14, 16, 56
grandfather of John Wilkes,
3, 6, 8, 14
— John, his ancestors and par-
entage, 3-5 ; his birth, 6 ; his
religious training and early home
life, 7 ; at boarding-school at
Hertford , 8 ; removed to a school
at Thame, 8, 9 ; studies at Ley-
den University, 10-14 ; tours
through the Netherlands, meets
Andrew Baxter and Mr. of
Drummelgier, ii ; his me whip
with William DowdesweU and
Alexander Carlyle, 12 ; and wim
Baron d’Holbach,^ 13 J wtijras
home to Clerkcnwell, 14 J
his addresses to Mary Mea^, ^
17; his personal appearance ano
the charm of his manner, 17; ^
marriage, 17. *8;
.INDEX 459
19 ; his wife settles the estate on
him, appointed a magistrate, his
popularity, 20 ; his gallantry, 23 ;
his friendship with Potter, 23-
27 ; political ambitions, 26 ; ap-
pointed High Sheriff, prepares
to contest Berwick-upon-Tweed,
27 ; contests Berwick - upon -
Tweed, 32 ; and is defeated,
petitions against»his opponent's
return, 33 ; challenges the bar-
rister who refuses to appear or
return his fees, 34 ; his petition
before the House, 3^, 35 ; after
many months he withdraws it,
35 ; his first serious disaweement
with his wife, 36 ; his Essay on
WomaHy 37, 38 ; his travesty of
Dr. Johnson, 38 ; his determina-
tion lo contest Aylesbury, 39 I
his marriage doomed to failure,
40 ; they separate, he removes to
lodge in St. James’ Place, a mem-
ber of the Royal Society and the
Beefsteak Club, 41 ; offers him-
self as candidate at Aylesbury,
42 ; • and is returned, 43 ; calls
and writes to Pitt offering his
support, 44, ^5 ; the cost of his
election and his extravagance and
dealings with money-lenders, 45 ;
removes to Great George St.,
*tneh to obtain restitution of con-
jugal rights, 46 ; his affection for
his daughter, 47 ; a tour in Scot-
land, 47, 48 ; an •fficer of militia,
48; a member of the club at
Medmenham Abbey, 49-51 ; in-
terests himself in procuring the
release from the press-gang of
Dr. Johnson's servant, 51 ; un-
successful at first as parliamen-
tary speaker, 52 ; seeking a
lucrative post, 52, 57 ; church-
warden of St. Margaret’s, West-
minster, 54 ; contesting Ayles-
btffy again, 55 ; and is returned,
56 ; takes part in the debate on
the King’s Speech, 60 ; Observa-
tions on the Papers relative to
the Rupture with Spain his first
political ^treatise, 60-63 ; ap-
pointed colonel of Buckingham-
shire Militia, 65 ; Gibbon’s
opinion of him, 66 ; he commis-
sions the printing oi An Essay
on Womans 66, 67; and starts
The North Briton, 67 ; his reputa-
tion as a wit, 68 ; some of his
bons-mots, 68, 69; not received
by the hostesses at the best
houses, 69 ; his editorship of
the North Briton, 71-109 ; loses
many friends by the violence of
his writings against the Scotch,
72, 73 ; compares Bute and the
Princess of Wales to Mortimer
and Queen Isabella, 73-74 ; his
friendship with Churchill, 74, 75 ;
caricatured by Hogarth, 77-78 ;
he attacks Hogarth in the North
Briton, 78 ; an attack in the
North Briton on Earl Talbot leads
to a duel, 78-81 ; publishes The
Fall of Mortimer with his dedica-
tion to the Earl of Bute, 83 ;
takes his daughter to Paris, 87 ;
his denunciation of the IGng’s
Speech, 91, 92 ; an open warrant
issued for his arrest as author of
the North Briton, 93 ; he applies
for a writ of habeas corpus for
the release of Kearsley, 95 ; de-
stroys the MS. of “ No. 45 ” and
displaces the type of the new
number of North Briton, 97 ; the
warrant is served on him and
he questions the legality of its
general nature, 98 ; consents to
go to Lord Halifax’s house, 99 ;
his examination by the Secre-
taries of State, 100, loi ; he is
committed to the Tower, 102 ;
his house searched for incrimina-
ting docufcents, 103 ; a writ of
habeas corpus granted, 104 ; he
is taken to Westminster Hall,
and after part hearing the case
is adjourned, 105 ; his*second
appearance, 105-107; his dis-
charge, 107; Hogarth’s carica-
ture of him, 108 ; removed from
his militia command, 113; ap-
plies for warrant to search for
stolen papers at the houses of the
Secretaries of State, 114, 115;
sets up ‘a private press in his
house, the first b^k printed
there, 115 ; prints the Essay on
Woman, 115-117 ; a visit to his
constituents at Aylesbury, n8,
1 19; his popularity in the City
and fame abroad, 119 ; the Gov-
ernment’s attempts to prove him
the printer of the Essay on Wo-
man, 120, 121; a visit to his
daughter in Paris, 121-125 ; 49
challenged to a duel in Fari^
460 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
122-125; refuses to do anything
to prevent the prosecution over
the Essay on Womans 125, 126;
his complaint of breach of privi-
lege, 130; after a debate in the
House of Lords on the Essay on
Woman h 6 is summoned to the
House, 133-135 ; is wounded in
a duel with Samuel Martin, 135-
137 ; further debate in the Com-
mons on the North Briton^ 137,
138 ; his civil action over the
stolen papers, 138 ; a lunatic
seeks his life, 140 ; the Govern-
ment send two doctors to see if
he is malingering, 141 ; he leaves
for Paris, intending to return in
three weeks, 142 ; and exile from
England for four years, though
advised to return, 144 ; but pre-
vented by a relapse, 145 ; is ex-
pelled the House, 146 ; had
reason to complain of parliamen-
tary ingratitude, 149 ; tried in
the King’s Bench for printing The
North Briton and An Essay on
Womany 150, 151 ; his creditors
press for payment and his land-
lord distrains for rent, he sells
most of his Aylesbury property,
152; his extravagance, 153; his
friends in Paris, 155-158; his
Letter to the Electors of Aylesbury ^
159 ; sentence of outlawry pro-
nounced against him, proposes
to write a History Of England,
and to make a tour in Italy,
160 ; literary executor to Charles
Churchill, 16 1 ; accompanies his
dau^ter to Calais on her return
to England, starts for Italy,
162 ; his infatuation for Signorina
Corradini whom he follows to
Bologna, 163 ; his description of
her, 164 ; his extravagances on
her, 165 ; receives much atten-
tion from the English in Italy,
168 ; his impression^ of the
Italians and of Rome, his house
near Naples, he could not pro-
gress with editing Churchill or
writing his History of England,
167 ; the friends he made in Italy,
168-171 ; the CUradini robs and
deserts him, he sets out for Paris,
spends two months at Geneva
on the way, 172 ; hears that the
<W^igs are again in power, has-
ten^o P^ris and opens negoti-
ations with the Government,
seeking a place, 173; but is
offered ;£iooo a year, terminable
at a change of Ministry, 174;
he demands a pardon, but after
three months he accepts the
pension alone, 175 ; Mile. Chas-
sagne, living with him in the
character of housekeeper, ab-
sconds with fiaoney, 176; he
comes to London with demands
on the Government, but finds
he had fixed his price too high
and returns to Paris, taking his
daughter with him, comes back
to London again, 177 ; he fails
to get better terms from the
Government, 178; and returns
to Paris, 1 79 ; publishes his Letter
to the Duke of Grafton^ 17^, 180 ;
he loses ;^i3oo by Cotes’s failure,
his wife’s income from the trust
estates is in arrear, and his ex-
travagance is continued, 181 ;
the time is now ripe fo»his return
to England, 182 ; seeking elec-
tion to Parliament, 183 ; -comes
to England, but is advised to re-
main away till the eve of dissolu-
tion of Parliament, goes to Ley-
den, 184; returns to London,
and though without qualification,
announces his intention tobacorifb
a candidate for the City, 185 ; is
presented with the freedom of
the City, a ^und raised for the
contest, issues his address, the
Government ignore him, 186 ;
he appears on the hustings each
day, 187 ; he is defeated, and
announces his intention to con-
test Middlesex, 188; issues his
address, 189 ; the election, 189-
192 ; he is returned at the head
of the poll? 192 ; the riots during
the election, 192, 193 ; he s^ds
out patrols to quell the disoWer,
his portrait as signboard, 194 »
visits Bath, surrenders himsrif
at the Court of King^s Bench,
195 ; but as he was not brought
there by writ, is discharged, J
at his request the writ is served
on him, he appears at Westmin-
ster Hall and is committed to
the King's Bench prison, I97 j
an attempted rescue, 198 ; tne
Wot Act read, I9?: the
sacre of St. George s Fields, r99>
INDEX 461
200 ; his outlawry reftersed, 201 ;
he is sentenced to fine and im-
prisonment for printing “ No.
45 " and the Essay on Womany
202 ; he decides to petition the
House of Commons, Sir Joseph
Mawbcy presents his petition,
206 ; he is elected an Alderman
for Farringdon Without, 210,
21 1 ; attends the debate on his
petition, 211-217; he is ex-
died, his dignified behaviour,
e is re-elected for Middlesex,
217 ; he celebrates his election
by giving a dinner in prison, he
is declared incapable of sitting
in Parliament, but stands again,
218 ; and is returned for a third
time, the election declared void,
219 ; Middlesex electors decide
to return him again so long as he
is expelled, 220 ; he is once more
expelled, 223 ; his holiday in the
King’s Bench Prison, 233-251 ;
he provides a home for his daugh-
ter, 233* 234 ; friends send him
table delicacies, 235 ; and other
gifts, 236 ; his constant contribu-
tions to the papers, 236, 237 ;
visits from ladies, 237, 247 ; mak- 1
ing himself cheap, 238; friends :
who visited him in prison, 238-
,.24<^; a Society founded to sup-
port the Bill of Rights and to pay
off Wilkes’s creditors, 241 ; the
amounts he owe^ 241, 242 ; his
carelessness of money, 242, 243 ;
American sympathy with his
cause and himself, 243-245 ; his
daughter and mother often visit
him together, 246; is awarded
/4000 in his suit against Lord
Halifax, 247, 248; his release,
248; and its celebration, 249;
sworn in as aldermaij at Guildhall
and feasted in Mansion House,
2.^9; Lord Chatham presents a
bill for reversing Wilkes's in-
capacity, but it fails, 250 ; the
Lord Mayor addresses the king
on the subject, 251 ; he takes a
house in Prince’s Court for him-
self and^olly, 252; fearing to
fall into obscurity he devotes
himself to his civic duties, 253 ;
his bitter repartees amongst lus
City friends, 253-256 ; he takes a
holiday tour through the south-
eastern countries with Polly, 255 ; I
has a skirmish with the Govern-
ment over Press Warrants, 256 ;
a dispute with Sawbridge, 256,
257 ; and with Lauchlin Macleane,
258, 259 ; a journey in the
eastern counties, receives the
freedom of Kings# Lynn, 259;
Wilkes and other City magis-
trates discharge newspaper men
arrested for publishing parlia-
mentary reports, 260, 261 ; his
attendance in the House of
Commons being commanded he
refuses unless he attends in his
place as member, 2^2 ; a silver
cup presented to him by the
corporation, 263 ; Parson Home's
attack on him, 264 ; and the
resultant spirit in the ‘ ’ Supporters
of the Bill of Rights,*^ 265 ;
chosen as sheriff of London, 265-
270; refuses a challenge from
Home, 266 ; receives a letter
from “ Junius," 266-268 ; his
amour with Mrs. Gardiner, opens
the galleries at the Old Bailey to
the public, 269; reforms intro-
duced by him whilst sheriff, 272,
273 ; accused of being in the pay
of France, 273; his debts and
annuity still paid by the” Suppor-
ters of the Bill of Rights," 274 ;
he stands for the mayoralty and is
returned at the head of the polL
275 ; but Townshend is selected;
276 ; acQused by Townshend of *
inciting the mob to riot on the
night of his mayoral ball, 277 ;
his tactics over the Remonstrance
to the Crown, 278 ; is summoned
by the sheriffs in place of
Luttrell to attend Parliament,
stands again for the mayoralty,
279 ; and is returned at the top
of the poll, but Bull is selected,
280; laid up for three weeks
with ague, and pays visits to
Eastbourne and Brighton, 281 ;
again at the head of the poll and
selected as Lord Mayor, 282, 283 ;
the Lord Mayor’s Show, 283-285 ;
the banquet and ball, is laid up
with ague for six weeks, is again
returned as lumber for Middle-
sex, 285 ; his parliamentary
programme, 286; he takes his
seat after an absence of eleven
years, moves that the resoiu%n
expelling him shall be expun^d,
462 LIFE OF JOHN ^WILKES
287 ; but is defeated, his quali-
ties as Lord Mayor, before his
time in suppressing cruelty to
animals, 288; starts a charity
for prisoners, holds a court at the
Mansion House, his hospitality,
no longerr taboo in society, 289 ;
presents a petition for the re-
moval of Lord North and the
better treatment of the American
Colonies, 290, 291 ; he quarrels
with Humphrey Cotes, 293, 294 ;
the result of his amour with Mrs.
Barnard, 294-296; his friends
had expected the impossible of
him, that he should make as
great a figure in the House of
Commons as he had at the
Mansion House, 297 ; introduces
a more intimate relationship be-
tween representative and electors,
possessed the ear of the House
whenever he chooses, 299 ; his
manner in the House, his costume,
300, 301 ; forty- two speeches in
six years, 301 ; his pose of in-
sincerity, 301, 302 ; his first
serious speech, 302 ; his speeches
on the American question, 302-
305 ; introduces Keform Bill in
Parliament, 305, 306 ; his finan-
cial embarrassments, 306-307 ;
offers himself as candidate for
the Chamberlainship of Lon-
don, 307; and is defeated at
three elections, 3o8<f he charges
the king with corrupting Parlia-
ment, 309 ; his farcical speech
on the prolific increase of the
roy^ family, 310 ; his attitude
towards, religious liberty, 31 1 ;
his speech on the national
library, a candidate again for
the Chamberlainship, 312 ; on
Hopkins* death he is elected,
313 ; his speeches against the
American War, 313-315 ; re-
turned for Middlesex again at
the general election, 315 ; the
causes of his lack of parliamen-
tary success, 316 ; the motion for
his expulsion expunged, 317 ; his
correspondence with his daughter,
319-321; his ^principal cronies,
321, 322 ; his conviviality, 323 ;
his friendship with Boswell and
Dr. Johnson, 323-338 ; dining at
^*Dilly's with Dr. Johnson, 324-
333» 335-337; infatuation
for Marianne Charpillon, 339-347 ;
his amour with Mrs. Stafford ^
347-355 ; his attachment to
Amelia Arnold, 356, 357 ; urges
the Lord Mayor to firmness in
suppressing the Gordon Riots,
362 ; collects an armed company
to resist the rioters, and assists
the military in defending the
Bank, 364 ; protecting property
night and day, 365 ; protests in
Parliament, 365, 366; a letter,
from his mother to him, 367,
368; his success as Chamber-
lain, 370 ; the emoluments of
the office, 371 ; a critic of his
accounts, enrolling apprentices,
372; a change in his political
opinions, 373 ; his official speech
at the presentation of tjie Free-
dom of the City to the younger
Pitt, 374, 375 ; contests Middle-
sex again, 375 ; his speech in
defence of Warren Hastings, 378 ;
leases Sandham Cot^iage in the
Isle of Wight, 379-382 ; his
neighbours in the island, his
edition of Catullus ^ 385 ; and the
Ethical Characters of Theophras*
tuSf 386; is rejected by the
Middlesex electors, 387-389 ; he
retains his post as Chamberlain,
though an attempt is mgde»to
eject him, 389 ; his office enables
him to clear ofi his debts, 389,
390 ; he regioves to Grosvenor
Square, 390; rumours that he
would be rewarded by Govern-
ment, 391 ; is shocked at the
horrors of the French Revolu-
tion, 392 ; his house attacked by
the mob, 393 ; often called on
to assist his relatives, 393> 394 ;
his diary, 394, 395 ; his strong
constitution and aged appear-
ance, 397; had lost much of bis
energy, his mind as active as
ever, delivers the address on
presentation of Freedom to Lord
Nelson,' and a week later to
Admiral Waldegrave, his last
^9; his last
hE death, he
but is found
ad Polly pays
im her own
burial-place
hisreputa^n
i^nda of the
public appearance,
illness, 399-401 ;
bequeaths £4000,
to oe insolvent, ai
the bequests fre
fortune, 401 ; his
^nd epitaph, aoa ;
suffers at the b
INDEX
463
historians, 403-407 ; ‘his repnta-
tion as a statesman rests upon
his changing the Spirit of the
Age, 407-410 ; his political
opinions in advance of his time
and now realised, 410-412 ; his
rank as a politician considered
apart from his personal im-
morality, 413-415 ; his applica-
tion for the (ivernorship of
Canada suggests* his willingness
to stop the North Briton^ 416 ;
the idea that he was “ always
on the market” refuted, 415-
418; his prosecutions for libel
justihed, 418-420 ; an estimate
of his work as author, 420-423 ;
in despising his followers he was
not untrue to the cause of
liberty, 424-426 ; his moral
charsfbter, 426-431 ; his friend-
ships, 431-435; his authorship
of the Essay on Woman, 437-
444 ; his age at death, 445-
Wiltes, Jt>hn, bons mots by or
about, 38, 48, 65, 68, 69, loi, 126,
187,* 191, 254f 255, 310, 323, 324,
335. 346, 357. 376
— — Debts of, 45, 77, 144, 151-
154, 163, 166, 175, 181, 185, 214,
241-244, 247, 248, 257, 258, 275,
290. 306, 307. 371. 401
— — Dress of, 17, 97, 300, 328
— — Residences of :
Aylesbury, i^ebendal House,
9, 18-22, 2V27, 46
Leyden, 10-14
London ; Great George
Street, 46, 96-99. 103,
109, 115, 120, 140, 152;
Fulham ; The Balcony
House, Elysium Row, 252 ;
Grosvenor Square, 390 ;
Mansion House, 285, 289,
294, 295 ; Prince’s Court,
195, 197, 252, 281, 285,
319, 379, 390 ; Red Lion
Court, 18, 90 ; St. James's
Place, 41 ; St. John’s
ire, 3, 4, 6, 7, 14;
J more Street, 178
i : Villa Pietracatella,
169, 171, 172
Paris: Faubourg St. Ger-
main, 181 ; Rue des
Saints P^res, 176; Rue
du Columbier, 122, 124,
153 ; Rue Neuve %es
Bons Enfants, 163 ; Rue
St. Nicaise, 153, 165
Sandown: Sandham Cottage,
379-382, 385, 395. 398
Wilkes, John, great uncle of John
Wilkes, 6
— Martha, afterwaj^s Douglas,
aunt of John Wilkes, 4
— Mary (Polly), daughter of John
Wilkes, her birth, 19 ; her child-
hood, 20 ; ill with small-pox, 41 ;
is nursed by her grandmother,
42 ; in the custody of her
lather when he separated from
her mother, at school at Chelsea,
47 ; taken by he^ father to
Paris to finish her education, 87 ;
her father writes to her from
confinement in the Tower, 104 ;
he visits her in Paris, 121-125 ;
learning every accomplishment,
* 53 ; agreeable companionship
in the family of Helvetius, 155 ;
and with Mme. Suard, 157 ;
returns to England to live with
her Uncle Heaton, 102 ; deprived
of her French maid, forciWy de-
tained by her mother when she
went to call on her, 166, 167 ;
arranged for her to spend half
each week with her uncle and
half with her mother, 167; a
great favourite with all the
family, 167, 168; returns to^
Paris with her father, 177;
comes ba^k to England on her «
father’s return, 184 ; stays with
her mother whilst her father is in
Holland, 185 ; installed in lodg-
ings in Princes Court, 213, 234 ;
often visited her father in prison,
246 ; diverts the attention of the
crowd at her father’s release,
248 ; she goes on a visit to Mme.
de Chantereine at Paris to see
the Dauphin’s wedding, 252 ;
she returns from France to ac-
compan;jr her father on a holiday
tour through the south-eastern
counties, 255, 256; her father
suggests her as partner with
** Junius ” at the Lord Mayor’s
Ball, 267 ; visits Mrs. Crisp
Molineux at C^rboldisham, ;
her popularit^ras Lady Mayoress,
she had no suitors, and was
devoted to her father, 292 ; her
correspondence with her fa%r,
319-321 ; corresponds with liSfc,
464 LIFE OF JOHN WILKES
Charpillon, 344 ; favourite of her
grandmother Wilkes, 367; in
Paris visiting the Duchesse de
Chastillon, 373 ; she decorates
the windows of their house in
Grosvenor Square, 3^ ; her
trustee, ; often ailing, 397 ;
travelling with her father through
Sussex and Surrey, 398 ; her
attention to her father in his
last illness, 400, 401 ; she pays
the bequests in her father’s will
from. her own fortune, 401 ; her
father's Birthday Odes to her,
423 ; hejr death, the disposal of
her property, 437 ; her epitaph,
W^kL, John, afterwards Storke,
Hayley and Jeffry, sister of John,
Wilkes, 8, 21. See also Storke,
Mary and Hayley, Mrs.
— — wife of John Wilkes. See
also Meade, Mary. Marriage of,
17, 18 ; birth of their daughter,
19 ; settles the Aylesbury estate
on her husband, 20; had no
sympathy with his political am-
bitions, 35 ; their first serious
disagreement, 36; a separation
arran^d, 41 ; she did not go
near Polly when suffering from
smallpox, 42 ; her irritation
that Polly was not entrusted to
her on her return from Paris,
166 ; forcibly detaining her, 166,
167 ; till arrangements are made
that Polly shall be with her half
of each>week, 178;^ Polly again 5
stopping with her whilst her'
father is in Holland, 185 ; is
left a life interest in her mother's
estate, 210 ; her death, 368 ; herj-
character, 369, 428; her hus-
band's faithlessness to her, 428
Wilkes, Nancy, daughter of Heaton
Wilkes and niece of John Wilkes,
167
— Sally, sister of John Wilkes, 5
20-22, 293, 366
— Sarah, mother of John Wilkes
4-7. 10, 14. 15. 42. 167, 246, 366-
568
Willes, John, 26, 39, 40
William III, 334
Williams, John, 97, 170
— Mrs., 327, 333
Wilson, Dr. Thomas, 240, 258, 265,
275, 321, 332, 432 *
Winchester, 65, 66, 81
Winckelmann, Johann, 168
Woffington, Peg, 442
Wolfe, General, 129
Wood, Robert, 99, loj, 116, 138,
140, 180
Worsley, John, 8, 35
— Sir Richard, 385
Wycombe, 79
Yallowby, John, 115
Yates, Mr. Justice, 202 ^
Yorke, Charles, Attorney-General,
96, loi, 114, 128, 148
Young, Thomas of Boston, Mass.
244
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